


Things We Lost in the Fire

by Scarlet_Gryphon



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Alien Biology, Alien Cultural Differences, Alien Culture, Alien Gender/Sexuality, Canon-Typical Violence, Canon-typical language, Comments are highly appreciated!, Dreams and Nightmares, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, M/M, Mutual Pining, Non-graphic description of a panic attack, Original Non-Binary Character - Freeform, Other, Road Trips, Slow Burn, and Duck is the alien, demisexual duck newton, demisexual minerva (TAZ), earth terms applied to alien gender/sexualities, in which Minerva is the Chosen, reverseverse, slow burn ducknerva
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-04-28
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:01:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 48,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22078891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarlet_Gryphon/pseuds/Scarlet_Gryphon
Summary: Fire burns. Fire destroys. Fire also urges new growth given the right condition. Maybe it's time to turn the furnace of destruction into the forge of recovery.(ReverseVerse!AU. Slow burn Ducknerva.)
Relationships: Aubrey Little & Duck Newton, Aubrey Little & Minerva & Duck Newton, Dani/Aubrey Little, Duck Newton & Leo Tarkesian, Minerva & Leo Tarkesian, Minerva/Duck Newton, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 23
Kudos: 63





	1. From the Ashes

**Author's Note:**

> I thoroughly blame this on the [Ducknerva Discord Server](https://discord.gg/4UUJnu4) and in particular, Spooks, who has been one hell of an enabler for me. Also, while they look unusual, no pronunciations of names have changed. Also Also, Spooks has made lovely art of a scene from this chapter: [ Look at this good good art](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/645319401456926741/662138607129198592/image0.jpg)
> 
> Reviews/comments and keysmashes are Always welcomed!

Miralaviniax Orbital Body Number Five was a quiet, desolate place. The once vibrant planet had been lush with greenery and people alike before an out of control fire had devastated the whole globe. The flames had spread faster, hotter, and further than anyone had expected, radiating out from the stone gate that had appeared in a clearing some ten miles away from the once-thriving city of Cordesh and ripping through the atmosphere with a vengeance. Very few people knew how the fire had started in the first place, and that number had decreased sharply down to one after the blaze had finally extinguished itself.

Ash blanketed the ground in thick drifts, smothering any chance of regrowth save for a few scraggly and stunted bushes and trees up in the foothills of the mountains surrounding Cordesh. Caves pockmarked the foothills, but very few had been deep or large enough to provide any sort of reasonable shelter against the fire. A figure emerged from a crumbling stone structure at the edge of the city, their face covered by protective gear to ward against the ash that the wind kicked up into stinging, choking sheets.

They moved through the silent city along one of several well-worn paths in the ash, heading towards the center of the city and the spiraling tower standing there. Its windows had been blown out in the initial firestorm, the frames warped and then burned away by the intense heat, the glass falling to shatter wherever the wind pushed it before it was buried by ash and other debris. Inside the central tower, a long flight of stairs led both up and down, dead-ending in a spacious chamber some three floors down and at the roof twice that distance upwards.

The former was the destination of the lone traveler. In the center of the chamber was an obelisk made of jet black stone that reached to the high ceiling above, its sharp tip barely missing the ceiling by a few scant inches. Glyphs made of curving lines of pale blue light swirled over the obelisk's surface, drifting across it like leaves carried by a stream. A camp was set up in one corner of the room, complete with a salvaged mattress on the floor, a patchwork pillow and a mound of ragged blankets piled on it.

A cooking area was set up a dozen or so feet away from the mattress, an eclectic collection of dishes and bowls set neatly on a low metal table next to a heating coil that looked to have been salvaged from a larger piece of machinery. Now that they were well away from the foul air and ash-strewn ground above, the figure removed the protective gear that had kept them safe and pushed back their hood, revealing a man with pale moss green skin and shoulder-length dark hair. Duc put his gear away before slinging the bag he wore off his shoulder and putting it on the table.

Food was getting harder and harder to find these days, even with the seeds he'd found. Not much could grow in the ash, and the soil barely got any water due to how messed up the local weather patterns still were affected by what the firestorm had done even after so much time had passed. Duc had done his best to make a garden of his own, clearing out a flat area on the roof of one of the more stable buildings and creating a raised bed with soil he brought up from underground, but its meager yield of sickly plants and tubers was barely enough to supplement the diet of cave fish and mushrooms he mainly subsisted on.

Duc ran a hand through his hair, pushing it back away from his face. He'd not bothered to pull it back, though honestly he should have if he was going about things properly. Grieving on Miralaviniax was a complex process, but one of the simpler rituals he was able to do on his own was to keep his hair long. Most of the other rituals required at least two people to properly do them, so Duc wasn't able to properly lay his people's spirits to rest.

“Ah, Waen Nhuten. You have returned. Did your travels bear fruit, or did you fail yet again?”

Duc closed his eyes. How he _hated_ that voice.

“I found some preserved food in a storehouse,” he replied, stripping the gloves off his hands and then putting them with the rest of his gear. He flexed his fingers, the darker skin where he'd been burned trying to shift still-hot rubble aside as he'd searched for any survivors after the fire pulling some with the motion. He'd been lucky in that his people were naturally resilient and fast healers, as there hadn't been anyone to help patch up the wounds he'd received then. The burns had mainly been surface ones, but they'd left their mark on him nonetheless.

Duc turned to face the far wall, focusing on one spot in particular. A large rack of various bladed weapons had been placed there by a long-dead weaponsmith, awaiting the day when their Chosen wielders would come and retrieve them. In the center of the rack was a long, flexible sword with a mouth worked into the metal of the broad cross-guard below the hilt. Duc had never bothered to find out who Beacon was meant for, but he knew the sword wasn't for him.

No, he'd been given a very plain blade, one that was meant far more for self-defense and the occasional chopping of vegetation rather than actual battle. Beacon had mocked him from the day Duc had taken shelter in the chamber, calling him by his adult name with a surprising amount of venom for something that didn't have eyes and couldn't see the destruction that had been wrought on the world around them. Duc _hated_ the name he'd been given after the _Kir'desh_ ceremony at age sixteen, its meaning bowing his head and shoulders under its terrible weight even as he was finally called an adult.

They'd called him _Ashbringer,_ one destined to bring death and destruction upon everything he'd loved and- And Duc had run. He'd escaped to the forest as soon as he could, building a life for himself caring for the trees and the animals there as any of the Nhuten line would've done. It had worked for some time, too. The others had left him alone for the most part, only dragging him out of the safety of the forest when the enemy they'd been fighting off and on for as long as Duc could remember had doubled down on the severity of the attacks they brought to bear against Miralaviniax and no other hope was left. He’d only heard about the death of his family when the others had attempted to coerce him back home, the pain lodging deep in his heart and stealing his breath away almost immediately.

Duc turned his attention away from Beacon, instead focusing on the obelisk in the center of the room. It was the work of a few moments to cross the room and come to a halt in front of it. Duc watched the glyphs drift over the dark stone in front of him, took a deep breath, and then pressed his palm flat against the cool surface.

Immediately, his vision was filled with ash and smoke, the reek of burning wood, leaves, and bodies all around him. Even knowing he wasn't really there, Duc had a hard time not retching and throwing up what little he'd managed to forage that day. The very sky above him was black with thick, roiling plumes of smoke, and what little of the area that wasn't on fire was already starting to be covered with a fine layer of gray ash.

Duc pulled his hand away from the obelisk, roughly dashing the tears from his face. The vision never changed no matter how much he willed it. Wasn't his destiny met? Was he still doomed to bring more pain and fire and ash to others?

“Why do you keep doing that, Waen Nhuten? You'll never see anything different.”

Duc strode away from the obelisk, defiance clear in every line of his body as he put his safety gear back on. “Shut up,” he snapped, his voice coming out as a gruff rumble through the thick filters of his breathing mask. “I didn't ask for your opinion.”

He went back upstairs, heading all the way to the top of the building. The wind plucked at his long cloak, tugging the fabric this way and that as Duc took a seat on a bench he'd salvaged and lugged all the way up there. The view of the city from his vantage point was still breathtaking, even if it was for all the wrong reasons. Duc closed his eyes as he listened to the wind blow past, taking in one slow breath and then letting it out in a long, low rush as he tried to center himself.

He honestly didn't know why he kept going back to the obelisk. Beacon was right: the vision would never change. But... but Duc still held out hope that maybe one day it would. Maybe one day he'd place his hand against the stone and his mind wouldn't be assaulted with death and decay and the results of his actions that cost two planets their inhabitants. Well, most of them.

Duc opened his eyes when he heard the familiar rush of wings and a loud croaking cry of greeting from nearby. He smiled at the sight of a _ch'rac_ , its jet black feathers ruffled from the wind. The flecks of white across the large avian's feathers marked it as Tora, the leader of the flock and one of the few beings that didn't seem to mind Duc's presence.

“Hey, Tora. I've got something here for you.”

Duc rummaged around in an inner pocket of his cloak and then drew out a small piece of dried meat he'd found while scavenging. Tora hopped forward, one intelligent beady eye focused on the meat in Duc's hand. She fluttered over to his knee and perched there, waiting patiently for Duc to give her the snack. It was gone in seconds, Tora barely stopping to rip it apart into more manageable-sized pieces before she gobbled it down.

She croaked at him again once she was done, leaning forward and presenting the back of her head for Duc's perusal. Duc laughed quietly before taking off his glove and gently scratching Tora's head, taking care not to pull any feathers out. Tora leaned into the attention, a content churring noise leaving her in response to Duc's actions. When she deemed she'd had enough attention, she pulled away and then hopped off of Duc's knee, taking to the air with one powerful jump.

Duc watched her fly off, stretching his fingers once more before pulling his glove back on. Discovering that Tora and her flock had survived the fire had been one of the best days of his life. Duc hadn't been ashamed to say that he'd broken down and cried when he'd first heard the cries of the _ch'rac_ on the wind, and even more so when he'd finally tracked down where they were roosting. It had taken some time to gain their trust, but once Tora and the others had accepted him, they'd treated Duc like one of their own, grooming him and bringing him shiny bits and bobs they found on their travels.

Duc saved every gift, the random collection of objects bringing a quiet joy to his life that he'd honestly thought long lost. He pushed back his hood as the wind died down, looking out over the ruined cityscape. It was rare that he could do that, but it was also rare for the ash to get that high up, so he could go uncovered from time to time. The sunset was beautiful with the way the tangerine sky darkened into molten gold near the horizon. It was just enough unlike the color of flames that Duc could actually enjoy it.

The beating of wings signaled Tora's return. She landed on Duc's left shoulder and made a warbling noise that he'd learned meant she wanted his attention. He turned his head and saw that she was holding a small, dark gray bit of rock in her beak. Duc reached up and held his palm flat, giving her a place to put the pebble. With the gift given, Tora turned her attention to his hair, tugging it this way and that in an effort to make it lay the way she wanted.

Duc laughed, the fond sound rusty and sticking in his throat. Laughter had been a sparse commodity for Duc in the past few years, apart from the occasional mocking laughter Beacon liked to throw his way. He looked down at the pebble Tora had gifted him, rolling it around in his palm. Something about it seemed familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. He raised it up so he could look at it more closely, earning an indignant clack of the beak from Tora.

“Sorry, Tor,” he muttered as she settled down once more. The pebble didn't look like any stone that had been used to build Cordesh, but it still tickled something in the back of Duc's mi-

He froze. This... this was a piece of the archway, the one Duc had made damn sure was destroyed after... after everything had happened. He thought he'd scattered the pieces far and wide, not wanting to give any remnants of the Swarm- stars only knew if they had an _actual_ name or not, but that was the one he knew them by -the chance to come through again and finish the job of wiping out his people, even if it was just him.

Tora lightly nipped his ear in farewell and then took off once more, others of her flock rejoining her as they returned to what had once been the Hall of Records where they roosted. Duc barely registered her leaving, his attention drawn inexorably to the piece of the gate in his hand. The urge to throw it as far away from him off the side of the tower was almost overwhelming, but something about the stone had him curling his fingers around it instead.

Duc made his way back downstairs, the sky rapidly darkening to blue-black as the sun set beyond the horizon. He pulled his cloak tighter around his body, shivering until he was below ground once more. Dinner that night was a quiet affair, with even Beacon keeping his council to himself and not chiming in unnecessarily. Duc had no idea if the sword slept, but he figured it had to be an even more boring existence than his own to have to wait for someone who may or may not come along and use him for some greater purpose.

Duc placed the gate pebble on the shelf next to the other trinkets Tora and her flock had given him, watching how the light of his lamp made it gleam until his tiredness got the better of him. With a grunt, Duc levered himself up and then stripped down to his underclothes before burrowing into his blankets to pass another lonely night.

Duc stared up at the ceiling, his hands resting loosely on his chest. It was early in the morning; early enough that the sounds of birds greeting the sunrise hadn’t yet started to filter down to his hideaway. He’d barely managed a few hours of fitful sleep, his dreams filled with smoke and ash and flames, just as they always were after he touched the obelisk.

“I can hear you thinking over there, Waen Nhuten,” Beacon drawled. “Regretting past choices once again?”

Duc sighed heavily. “It wasn’t like I had a choice, Beacon. I tried to avoid my fate for everyone’s good and they pushed it on me anyways.”

“Maybe so, but you could’ve refused. You could’ve destroyed the device and returned home. There are many things you could have done, _Ashbringer,_ and you did the one thing that caused your fate to come to pass.”

Duc threw the first thing he could get his hands on in Beacon’s general direction, hoping to distract if not entirely shut the sword up. That turned out to be the pebble from the gate. As it clattered against something- Duc wasn't sure if it was Beacon or not, but he didn't really care, as it served the purpose of shutting him up, however temporarily -Duc buried himself back under his blankets, intent on trying to get back to sleep.

There were several long moments of silence before Beacon spoke up.

“Waen. Waen Nhuten. Oh, for the love of- _Duc Nhuten, wake_ _ **up**_!”

Duc groaned as he pushed back his blankets, turned on his lantern, and then sat up to glare at Beacon. “What the hells do you-”

He stopped dead when he saw that the obelisk was now the same color as the gate pebble, which lay a couple feet away on the floor. The glyphs had shifted from their usual pale blue to a far richer turquoise, their slow drift speeding up to an energetic whirl that Duc hadn't seen since before the fall of Miralaviniax. Duc quickly pulled on some pants and then got up, taking his lantern with him to light the way. He set it at his feet when he reached the obelisk, the pool of light spreading around his feet and throwing his face into stark shadows.

Duc lifted a hand, his fingers curling against his palm in hesitation before he steeled himself and pressed his hand against the stone. The world swirled around him, colors and sounds blending into a whirlwind of sensation until it settled into a cohesive scene. Duc found himself standing in a curious tunnel, its walls covered in gray tiles that themselves were covered in brightly colored murals, though Duc couldn't see any sort of coherence in the styles of the artwork.

His attention was pulled away from his observation of his surroundings by the sounds of shouting and growling from further down the tunnel. Before Duc could try to move further into the vision, a young man bearing a sword came running towards him, a fur-covered beast hot on his heels. Duc watched the man turn and then stand his ground, raising the blade in defiance of the beast's anger. His eyes widened when he recognized that blade, watched it slice at the beast until the monster lay dead on the hard ground before the heavily breathing young man. It hung not two spaces down from Beacon on the weapons rack, which meant- Which meant-

Duc gasped sharply as he stumbled away from the obelisk, nearly kicking over his lantern as he went. He sank down to the ground in a daze, ignoring Beacon's entreaties and then demands for information. Duc stared into space, mind racing. He... He could be useful again. He could _help,_ even if it just meant being the person who passed along knowledge and weapons to the man in the vision.

Laughter bubbled up and out of him, echoing off the chamber walls. The laughter held a rough edge to it, speaking more to Duc's relief and astonishment that he could be of use to anyone once more after the destruction he had wrought, however unwillingly. The laughter eventually petered out, with Duc wiping away some of the tears that had streamed down his face.

“What did you see that has you laughing so hard, Waen Nhuten?” Beacon asked.

“Hope,” Duc replied once he managed to collect himself enough to answer. “I saw fucking _hope_ , Beacon.”

Duc barely waited until the sun rose that morning to collect the sword he'd seen from the rack and take it and the gate pebble to the one place he'd never fully explored: the Temple of the Chosen. It was on the far side of Cordesh, well away from the gate. The fire had damaged it much like the rest of the city, burning what could be consumed and leaving just the stonework scorched and cooling. There had once been colorful murals and tile-work visible everywhere in the temple, but the former had blistered away in the heat and most of the latter was covered with ash or other substances Duc did his best not to think about.

He also brought a small offering with him of a stick of incense, a sliced raw tuber, and some dried fish to place before the gods. Duc doubted any would look down on him favorably for such a meager offering and his role in the destruction of two worlds, but for this, he would make the effort anyways. When he reached the temple, he picked his way through the corridors until he reached the main chamber. The central dais where he would ultimately place the sword lay surprisingly undisturbed in the middle of the room, with only a light coating of ash on the pale stone.

Duc set his offering on one of the many altars along the edge of the room, clearing it of as much of the ash and debris as he could before getting things ready. The sweet spice of the incense filtered through his breathing mask, making Duc's eyes flutter closed briefly as memories of the last time he'd smelled that particular scent bombarded him. He pushed them away, shaking his head to clear it.

No. He couldn't get lost in the past, not now. Duc turned away from the altar and then went over to the dais, mounting the short flight of stairs with a few brisk steps. He removed the broadsword from the scabbard hanging from the belt he'd managed to find in the armory, steeling himself before taking the leather-wrapped hilt in two hands and pushing the blade into the waiting opening in the middle of the dais.

The room went pitch black as the machinery buried deep under the temple began its work, going sluggishly at first but soon picking up speed. Points of light began to appear in the main chamber, whirling around Duc until one point grew larger and larger, dwarfing the rest as it sped towards him. He braced himself, grip tightening around the sword. He would only have to do it like this once, but fuck if it wasn't going to hurt.

Usually the kind of bond Duc was attempting was used by fighters in the same squad or platoon, with the commander directing their people mentally or via astral projection and the whole group sharing in their strength and hardiness, both physical and otherwise, but even that hadn't been enough to stand against the Swarm. Duc hastily cleared his mind as the light rushed over him, pushing the thoughts of the Swarm and those long dead aside so he could be as ready as possible for when the bond finally connected.

Waves of pain washed over him, nearly driving him to his knees. Duc closed his eyes, hanging on to the sword as he breathed through the pain. Only when the pain settled did he open them again, blinking away the tears in his eyes as he looked around for the one Chosen to wield the sword. He doubted he could hold the connection for longer than a few minutes at a time given the distance between them, but he'd be damned if he didn't do his best.

Duc breathed a heavy sigh of relief when he saw the dark green form of the man he'd seen in the vision standing not that far away. At least, that was what he assumed. Either way, he straightened up and let go of the sword as he readied himself to speak, relying on the side-effect of the bond transferring both the other man's name and preferred language directly to his brain.

“Uh, Leo Tarkesian? My name is Duc Nhuten, and I need to talk to you.”

Working with Leo was amazing. Duc thrived with being able to talk with another living being, even if it was just for brief minutes at a time. Once Leo got over the shock of having Duc appear before him, he took to training with aplomb. Getting the sword to him had been an issue, however. It had taken some weeks of consideration and delving into what records Duc could find before he was able to transport the sword across the space between worlds to Leo. It had also wiped Duc out for a solid week, and Leo had been very relieved when Duc had shown his face once more, thoroughly chastising him for the action.

The next nineteen years saw the two of them working closely together to fight the monsters that appeared through the gate in what Duc now knew to be called a subway station. Learning about Leo's home world was fascinating, and Duc soaked it up as much as he could. He didn't talk a lot about Miralaviniax, only giving Leo the basics as needed. Instead, he trained with him in the finer points of swordsmanship, which in turn helped to reinforce the lessons he'd halfheartedly learned as a child before the _Kir'desh_ ceremony.

Leo turned out to be one of the most understanding and sweet people Duc had met. Even when they weren't training, Leo was constantly helping Duc feel less like a failure and more like an actual person again. It was liberating and heartbreaking at the same time, because Duc doubted he'd ever get to actually meet Leo in person.

“Y'know,” Leo said one day after they'd finished their training session, “I'm gettin' kinda up there in years. I'm startin' to get gray hairs.”

Duc cocked his head curiously. “How old are you?”

Leo laughed. “I'll be forty next year. Maybe not _super_ old, but still over the hill, ya know? My joints are starting to ache a bit here and there. It's wild gettin' old, Duc, even with all the superpowers you've given me.”

Duc frowned, even though he knew Leo couldn't see him. “I don't... Forty's _young_ for my people. We live several hundred years on average. I didn't... How long do humans live?”

“Eh, if you take care of yourself and nothing shitty happens? Eighty, ninety years is the usual. Some people get above a hundred, but they're pretty rare.”

Duc was silent as he digested that bit of information. “Well, _fuck_.”

That earned another laugh from Leo. “Don't worry about it, Duc. I've still got a few good years left in me. You're not getting rid of me that fast.”

Duc held on to that, especially when after one day a few months later, Leo told him that the gate had just vanished, as if it had never existed in the abandoned subway any more. It took a good deal of research, meditating, and communing with the obelisk, but Duc eventually found out where the new gate had appeared. According to Leo, West Virginia was usually a quiet place for the most part, but Duc knew that having his friend and Chosen uproot himself from his home in New York City would have to be a secondary plan. He needed a new member of the team who was closer to the gate and could start defending the people there right away.

Duc searched tirelessly, going through each sword in the armory until, in a last-ditch effort, he tried Beacon. For once, the sword didn't complain as he was placed in the slot on the temple's dais, seemingly content with finally being sent on his way to fulfill his purpose. When the whirl of color and sound calmed down, Duc found himself facing the indistinct form of a young woman, her name drifting into his mind on a whisper.

“Wh- who are you, and what are you doing in my room?”

Duc took a deep breath in and then let it out slowly. “My name is Duc Nhuten, Minerva Knightley, and I'm here because I need to talk to you about your destiny.”


	2. Standing Outside the Fire

Silence followed Duc's pronouncement. He waited patiently for Minerva to respond, hands clasped loosely in front of him. She stared in his general direction for a while before speaking once more.

“Your name is Duck? Like the bird?”

“Pronounced the same, but no 'k',” Duc replied with a small smile, having had similar discussions with Leo in the past.

“And my destiny?” Minerva perked up. “You sound like Darth Vader, but you're a hologram like Obi-Wan Kenobi. Oh, shit, does that make me Luke Skywalker? I always wanted to be Princess Leia, but she doesn't have a lightsaber. She definitely deserves one, though.”

Duc held up a hand. “I don't- I'm not entirely sure what you're talking about,” he said, “but I do have a sword for you? Is that- is that anything? It's not made of light, though. Just metal. It, uh, it also talks? Kind of annoying, but he'll shut up if you throw something at him.”

“Okay, but why? Why would you need to give me a sword or choose me?”

Duc hesitated. “How old are you?”

“I turn nineteen in a few days. Why?”

Duc relaxed at that. Good, that meant she was of age, or so his dealings with Leo had taught him. He knew he'd been lucky when he'd connected with Leo since the other man was already out in the world on his own, but he had no idea if Minerva was.

“That's- Hm. So, it's a long story, but the gist of it is that there's a place here in West Virginia where there's a gate that's letting things through that want to attack Earth,” he explained. “Your destiny is intertwined with that gate, and I'm here to help you work towards being able to meet that destiny. I can't promise it'll always be easy, though. Are you willing to train under me?”

Minerva contemplated the question. “Can I tell anyone else?” she asked.

“That's probably not the best idea. I don't know how many people would believe you if you told them about me.”

Minerva nodded hesitantly at that.

“Alright. What do I have to do?”

Duc watched Minerva go through the paces of one of the more complex sword forms he'd taught her, observing her posture and the flow of her movements with pride. She was quite gifted in her remembrance of the forms, but he worried about the intensity with which she practiced when not at what she called her 'day job'. She was starting to remind him of the more intense and war-driven fighters in the Miralavian army, and that was resemblance was starting to frighten him.

Minerva finished out the last leg of the form before lowering Beacon, her breathing heavy but measured. She turned to him, her posture happy and loose.

“How was that?”

“Very good,” Duc told her as she set Beacon down and retrieved a nearby water bottle to drink from. “You're doing very well with the _Ishrav_ form. It might be time to teach you the _Urrav_ one next. It's a more complex one but I think you could handle it.”

Minerva finished her drink and set down the bottle before speaking, hesitant at first but then increasing in vehemence as time went on.

"So, when are we going to go take the fight to the enemy? I'm ready, Duc, you know I am. You said yourself that my fighting was looking really good the last time we sparred, and I think it's time I actually go out and start doing what I need to."

Duc sighed heavily, the rush of air rough and harsh through the filters of his mask. "A few weeks of training doesn't make you a warrior, enhanced strength or not," he said. "You can't just rush into this blindly."

"I'm not!" Minerva protested. "I just can't spend all my time training when people need my help."

"Oh? And where would you start?" Duc snapped, his frustration getting the better of him. "Have you done any research as to where the gate might be? Or if anyone is already spearheading the fight against the invaders? You can't jump in feet first without learning how to swim."

"Then what's the point of all this training? Why even give me this sword if you don't want me to use it?"

"The point is to make sure you don't die! This isn't a _game_ , Minerva It's a matter of life and death. People could die. _You_ could die! I can't-”

Duc turned his head away from Minerva's projection, his hands curling into tight fists at his sides. He refused to see her burn fast and hard and _bright_ like a comet and then be snuffed out before she could truly find her place in the world, Chosen fate or not. Ever so slowly, his fingers relaxed, though he couldn't stop the faint trembling that set up in them. He just hoped that the projection didn't show it.

“I'm sorry, but I can't- I can't see you throw yourself into the fire and watch you burn,” he murmured. “I'll understand if you hate me for this, but I'm-” He drew in a shaky breath and summoned up the ritual words that would end their training partnership. “This is our last training session, Minerva Knightley. Beacon will keep you safe as long as you have him by your side. I release you from my tutelage. May- May your life be long and your blade never dull.”

He ended the projection before Minerva could react. Duc didn't regret meeting Minerva, but he did regret setting her on this path. Without his intervention, she could've lived a perfectly normal life. And now? Now he'd destroyed yet another good thing in the universe. He strode out of the Temple of the Chosen, his chest tight and his eyes burning with unshed tears.

He didn't return there for twenty-two years, not until a vision unlike any he'd had before woke him out of a dead sleep, the syllables of Minerva's name shouted panic-heavy into the night. Duc stared unseeing into the darkness of the armory, his mind still caught up in the throes of his vision as it replayed over and over.

Minerva had been surrounded by flames, Beacon held in her hands as she faced off against a burning monstrosity. Duc had only seen her from the back but he'd know her silhouette anywhere, even after so long without seeing it. She'd gotten taller than when she was eighteen, likely having hit a late growth spurt. He couldn't tell the state of her hair besides short or carefully tied away, but that didn't really matter at the moment. What mattered was that she was in danger and near uncontrolled fire and that was _intolerable_ to him.

Duc barely took the time to get dressed and put his protective gear on once his trance had ended before he was running through the aging night, lantern in hand. His rapid footfalls echoed off the broken buildings, fine ash floating up in the air in great plumes as he moved. Duc only stopped when he reached the platform in the Temple of the Chosen, skidding to a halt at its center. He knelt down and pressed his hand against the large glyph that was beneath his feet, closing his eyes and focusing on the bond he still shared with Minerva.

He'd let it lay dormant these past twenty-two years, though he'd checked in with Leo from time to time to get some much needed interaction and to subtly make sure Minerva was doing alright. Leo had kept a distant eye on her throughout the years, though he'd made sure to share his disappointment with Duc several times about abandoning her. Duc had tucked away that guilt into the back of his mind, knowing full well Leo was right.

“Come on, come _on_ ,” Duc muttered, listening to the grinding complaints of the machinery deep below. It would have to be serviced later; Minerva's well-being was paramount. After several long and agonizing minutes, the platform illuminated under Duc's feet. He rose to a standing position, eager to see Minerva, even if it was only as a projection. At least he knew she was still alive; the Chosen bond would've ended with her death, after all. Alive, however, did not mean the same thing as safe or well.

The time between when he activated the platform and when his projection finally materialized on Earth felt like it took three times longer than what it should have, and even when it did connect, Duc couldn't hear anything beyond a melancholy song that echoed around him. It stole his breath away to hear something of his people he thought lost surrounding him in its full glory. He reluctantly pulled his attention away from the song when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye.

Minerva's tall form passed through his, barely pausing on the path to wherever it was that she was going. Duc couldn't tell if she was injured or if the events he'd seen had come to pass yet. He'd have to fix the issues with the relay machinery to truly be able to talk with her, but at least she seemed to be in one piece.

Duc let the connection fade. He doubted the tightness in his chest would be fully released until he properly spoke to Minerva, but what he had would have to do for the time being.

It took Duc four days to properly clean and reattune the machinery deep below the temple, but as soon as he was satisfied with its state of repair, he prepared himself both mentally and physically. He knew Minerva couldn't see him beyond a silhouette, but that didn't stop him from pulling back his freshly washed hair into a simple braid and making sure his clothing was neat and tidy. He'd been willing to expend some of his precious clean water to ensure that he was presentable, even if he was the only one who really knew it.

Duc readied himself before starting the projection, knowing the conversation ahead was not going to be an easy one. He breathed a quiet sigh of relief when the projection connected properly before straightening his posture.

“Duc Nhuten. I was wondering when you would turn up again. No grand proclamations of destiny this time around?”

Duc winced. Minerva's speech only ever got intensely formal when she was angry, something she clearly was now. Not that he blamed her given the situation. Very well. If she wanted formality, then he would respond in kind. He laid his left hand flat over his heart and then inclined his head at just the right angle in deference to her.

“Not this time, _Zirav_ Knightley,” he said, letting his hand drop. “No, I... I came to see how you were doing.”

Minerva scoffed. “After twenty-two years? What changed? And what does _'Zirav'_ mean?”

“I... I had a vision of you. You were fighting something and were surrounded by fire and the _thing_ was on fire too and-” Duc drew in a ragged breath. “I don't know if it's happened yet or not. And _Zirav_ is a term of respect for a warrior. I lost the right to call you by your first name when I stopped being your teacher.”

Minerva stayed silent for long enough to make Duc nervous. When she did finally speak, Duc was taken aback by what came out of her mouth.

“You were right back then. Mostly.”

“Wh-what?”

“You said that it was a matter of life and death, that it wasn't a game. I was caught up with finally being considered special and worthy of being a fighter that I didn't stop to think about what it meant. Almost all of my family has been in the military. My dad retired just before we met, actually.”

“And you couldn't join?” Duc asked. Minerva had spoken of her family and their military connections before, but never particularly in-depth. She waved a hand dismissively.

“I wouldn't have been allowed on the front lines at the time, and even now women have a bad time of it,” she said, “but then you came along and didn't care what gender I was. You taught me how to fight without reserve.”

“Your gender never played into my decision to train you, only your- only your destiny,” Duc said. “You mentioned that I was only mostly right?”

Minerva chuckled. “Yes. You shouldn't have just left me like that. It took me a long while to come to grips with the fact that you wouldn't be coming back. So, since the military was off the list, I found another way I could help people. I became a forest ranger. Mostly it's just patrolling the Monongahela, but I did some training in firefighting as well. That vision you had? That happened four days ago. I saw your projection then but it didn't do anything.”

“I was having some issues with the resonator and-” Duc shook his head. “Nevermind. The point is, that shouldn't happen again unless something goes wrong. I'm... I'm glad you're alright, and that you've found a good path in life. How did you- Why were you fighting that thing anyways?”

Duc listened to Minerva's tale of investigating an unusual campfire one night that led to her discovering a gate to a different world and then, ultimately, joining up with a group of people called the Pine Guard that worked to keep Earth safe from what they called Abominations. The longer Duc listened, the prouder he became of her. She had managed to grow into an amazing adult and warrior in the time they'd been apart, and all the credit for that was due to her.

“So, yeah, that one's all taken care of, but Mama says these things pop up every two months or so at the full moon,” Minerva concluded, “so we are going to keep an eye on things until something new happens.”

Duc nodded, as there was precious little for him to say save for one thing. “That sounds great. And uh, for what it's worth? I'm sorry about leaving you alone for so long. It was entirely the wrong move and I regret it.”

“Fear can get the best of any of us. What matters is what you do with that fear,” Minerva said with a shrug. “It's something I've had to learn very quickly.”

Duc considered that. He doubted he'd ever entirely get over his fear of fire, but he also had a very good reason to have a healthy dislike of it. He flexed his fingers absently, nearly missing what Minerva said next.

“Hey, Duc? Before you go, two things.”

“Hm? Oh, sure. What are they?”

“First, if you want come around more often, that would be alright with me. I could definitely use more training if I'm going to be any help with the Pine Guard.”

“And the second?”

Duc's heart rose when he heard what she had to say next:

“Call me Minerva.”

Being able to repair his broken relationship with Minerva, however slowly, was a blessing in Duc's eyes. Another blessing was finding a way to enhance the connection enough so that he could see a limited amount of Minerva's physical surroundings, as well as objects she carried beyond just vague shapes, as it meant he could tailor her training to better fit the terrain. Four months after they reconnected, Duc was awoken by a vision that had him staring up at the ceiling with a sense of melancholy. So, it had come to the end for his planet, then. He hated the idea of leaving Minerva and Leo behind, but it wasn't like he had the ability to stop a meteor from hitting his planet. He had a little time, though; the position of the stars in the vision weren't quite right for it to happen that day.

Duc double-checked on one of the few long-range scanners that was still working, going into the remains of the Astral Academy to find it. The scanner confirmed what he'd seen, and without the controls of the intricate network of orbital defense weapons- they were locked away in the War Ministry -he was unable to redirect or destroy the meteor outright. He closed his eyes, fingers curling sharply against the smooth surface of the console.

“ _Fuck!_ ”

Right. He needed a plan. There was a chance he could survive, but he couldn't do that on the surface, and judging from the trajectory of the meteor, it would land roughly where Cordesh was, meaning the Temple of the Chosen would more than likely be destroyed. It was possible that the machinery beneath it would stay intact or, failing that, be able to be repaired, but Duc wasn't going to hold out hope.

The best he could do was to find somewhere to weather the event. There had to be a bunker somewhere he could hole up in. There was precious little time, but time enough to find shelter, move his supplies, and then, if all went well, say his goodbyes to his friends.

Duc moved quickly after that, searching what records he could find before stumbling upon a bunker that looked to be deep enough to escape the majority of the damage. He shifted camp there, hesitating before taking the rest of the Chosen weapons to safety as well as a stash of record crystals that held some of the history, songs, and tales of his people and a reader for them. If nothing else could be saved, at least he'd have remnants of his culture with him at the end.

He only had two days until the meteor came when he reached out to Minerva. Duc had to quickly reassess his intentions when he saw the situation his Chosen had somehow managed to find herself in. She was standing over the fallen form of a humanoid being, though Duc could only grasp its outline because Beacon was wrapped around its throat.

“Now's not the best time, Duc,” Minerva said, her voice strained. “I only just managed to get this thing captured.”

“What- what are you planning on doing with it?” Duc asked.

“It's an enemy, Duc Nhuten. Clearly it needs to be dealt with- _permanently_ ,” Beacon drawled. Duc had to bite back his usual reaction of annoyance at the sound of the sword's voice and instead kept his own tone level and non-confrontational.

“Is that what you think, Minerva?” he prompted.

“He's been causing trouble all around town, him and his friends,” she said. Duc held up his hands in a placating fashion, not wanting to startle or aggravate her in any fashion.

“Alright, that definitely is something to consider, but do you think they're the Abominations you're looking for, or are they just a symptom of the problem? You trust me, right?”

“Right.”

“Then look at its eyes. What do you see there? Anger? Hate?”

Minerva hesitated and then slowly lowered her arm, Beacon reluctantly uncurling from around the captive's neck as she did so. “Fear. I just see fear.”

“Then maybe they're not the real enemy here,” Duc suggested gently. “They're just foot soldiers for something bigger. Maybe- Maybe if you save this one, you can use it to get information on the thing that's your actual target. I- _No, Minerva_!”

Duc could only watch helplessly as Minerva and her captive were attacked by someone he hadn't realized was there. The projection cut out just as the attacker was driven off by someone else coming near, making Duc swear long and loud. He pushed back his hood and ran his fingers sharply through his hair several times, dislodging it from where he'd had pulled it back at the nape of his neck.

It took him longer than he cared to admit to resettle his mind and connect with Minerva again, but when he did, he found her in the middle of what looked to be patching up the wounds of her former captive.

“Minerva, I'm sorry for leaving so abruptly earlier. The shock of that attack caught me off guard enough to break my concentration. How're you doing?”

“A lot better than I would be if I was still just a normal human,” Minerva replied, focusing on her work. “Barclay helped patch me up. Had to do a few stitches, but nothing huge. Duc-” She sighed and then looked up, her hands falling still as she focused on him. “Thank you. I got so caught up in the heat of battle that I didn't stop to really look at the situation. That probably would've gone far differently if you hadn't shown up.”

Duc hummed. “I have faith you would've made the right choice.”

Minerva shrugged before going back to her first aid, her hand steady even with her own injuries. “Maybe, maybe not. I'm just glad you came.”

Duc watched her for a while longer and then let the connection die after saying goodnight. He used the next day to finish preparing the bunker. It was when he was gathering the last bits of food from his garden that he realized he hadn't planned for one thing. A familiar croaking noise from a nearby rock had Duc looking over to see Tora perched there, her head cocked as she watched him work. Duc's stomach dropped as he stared at her.

“Oh, _shit._ ”

He didn't know if he'd be able to save all of the _ch'rac_ , but he could at least try to save one.

“Hey, Tora. You, uh, you want to come with me? It's going to be pretty messy up here soon, and I don't want to see you out in it.”

He extended an arm to her, hoping she would take the offer. Tora eyed him for a long moment before leaving her rock and flying over to land on his wrist. He ran his fingers over her back, closed his eyes, and then focused on the bond the two of them shared.

“ _Sleep, little one,_ ” he murmured, pushing as much suggestion through the bond as he dared. Tora clacked her beak twice but didn't resist, instead shuffling up his arm to rest near his elbow and then tucking her head under a wing, looking like she was settling in for a nap. His heart beating like a drum, Duc grabbed the basket of root vegetables from where he'd left it and made his way back to the bunker, only relaxing when Tora was perched safe and sound on a sheltered piece of railing.

When he couldn't make any more preparations, Duc readied himself and made one last trip to the Temple of the Chosen. Unlike any time before, he connected with both his Chosen, starting with Leo and warning him to remain quiet before contacting Minerva. His hope that she was safe and sound bore fruit when he recognized the familiar confines of her apartment. She was looking over Beacon at her kitchen table, running a cloth over his blade.

Duc cleared his throat to get her attention. Minerva whipped her head up, her grip tightening on Beacon's hilt momentarily before she realized who was there.

“Oh, Duc, it's you. Hi.”

“Hey there, Minerva. How'd the hunt go?”

“We won, but not without some damage.” She held up Beacon to show off the notch on the blade and then put him back down on the table. “I don't know if I'll be able to fix him, but I'll do my best.”

“I'm sure he'll work well for you even with some battle damage.” Duc rubbed at the back of his neck, trying to put into words what needed to be said before the end. “So... There's a few things I need to tell you, and I don't have much time, so I apologize in advance for not really being able to answer many questions.”

“Okay, you're starting to worry me here, Duc.”

A tired laugh escaped Duc before he could stop it. “Sorry. Um, so, first things first. Your planet isn't the only one to have been linked to another through a gate. My world- Miralaviniax Orbital Body Number Five -it had a gate too. The beings on the other side of that gate were... horrible. We called them the Swarm because we never really learned their true name.”

He stared off into the distance at a point above Minerva's head, memories flashing rapid-fire through his mind as he spoke. “No one was sure who really started the war, but it lasted for... for far too long. By the time I came of age and underwent the _Kir'desh_ ceremony to gain my adult name, the Swarm's attacks seemed never-ending. I wasn't exactly happy to be looked at as a possible warrior, especially since I never wanted to be a warrior. I, uh, I wanted to become our version of a forest ranger, I guess. My family line is known for being protectors of the green paths. That's what Nhuten means in Miralavian. When the elders looked into my future and gave me the name that I would carry throughout my adult life, I ran. I didn't want to carry the weight of the grim future they saw for me.”

“And what was that future?”

Duc closed his eyes, his shoulders slumping. “They called me _Waen._ It means 'Ashbringer'. I was sixteen and was told that I would be responsible for death and destruction one day. I ran, did my best to disappear into the forests. I thought it worked, thought I'd escaped my fate. Turns out I was only delaying it. The war with the Swarm got to be so bad that there was only a handful of survivors in Cordesh, the nearest city to the gate. I only found out when some of them found me and all but dragged me back to Cordesh.

“They had this plan. A fucking _stupid_ plan but a plan nonetheless. I would go through the gate, find somewhere deep enough to shelter, and then set off this weapon they'd cooked up. It was supposed to set fire to the atmosphere of the Swarm's home planet and finally wipe them out. I guess they figured that my fate as Ashbringer was to burn out the Swarm and end the war. They were only half right.”

Duc took in a deep breath, the release uneven and juddering. “The g-gate was open when the device went off. I didn't-” He cut himself off, his fingers digging hard into his palm. “I was the only survivor. I looked for others who had a gate linking them to another planet so I could help them avoid what happened to my people and then I found Earth and... And it was perfect. But... But our connection is almost at an end.”

“Wh-what?” Minerva got to her feet, the chair screeching against the linoleum in her dining area. “What are you talking about, Duc?”

“Our connection, the one that give you your powers, it comes from me and my world. That includes the ability to see the future in a way. I'm sure you saw it in your dreams. You saw a meteor coming, right?”

“Right, but-”

“It wasn't heading to Earth. It's coming for me. Meteors aren't an uncommon thing here, but there used to be an orbital defense against it. That's gone without people who know how to work it, and Minerva, I'm sure as hell not one of them,” Duc continued on. “I've got a plan- there's this bunker that should be deep enough -but the Temple of the Chosen, the resonator that allows us to speak... That's probably going to be destroyed. This is the last time we're going to speak to one another, and I sure as hell wish it wasn't. Keep fighting to protect Kepler and Sylvain. Remember to keep training. It's not going to be easy after the connection is gone, but I believe in you, Minerva. You're strong and you can keep being strong, even without me.” He laughed sadly. “You've already proven that.”

“Duc, you can't just _go_ ,” Minerva said, her voice cracking. “I need you here to help me train and protect everyone and-”

Duc held up a hand. “I'm sorry, Minerva. There's nothing I can do to stop it.” He glanced out a nearby window and then turned to Leo, who had been listening stoically the whole while. “Go be with her. She's going to need as much help as you can give her. Take care of one another.”

Leo nodded before striding out of Duc's vision. Duc let the connection fade with him before tamping it down to a bare minimum so Leo wouldn't feel the echoes of the bond snapping like Duc assumed it would.

“Duc, what do you mean, 'take care of her'?” Minerva demanded.

“You'll see soon enough.” Duc bowed deeply to her. “Goodbye and be well, Minerva Knightley. It has been an honor.”

He ended the connection, dampening the bond like he had with Leo's. Duc raced back to his bunker, securing the last bulkhead door with scant time to spare. He kept his eyes on Tora as the ground began to shake, glad to have a friend nearby as the lights went out and the darkness overtook them.


	3. Pompeii

Sunlight slowly filtered through the wreckage of Cordesh, dust dancing along the paths between pieces of shattered masonry and twisted metal. The dust followed the path of the light until it reached a larger area that allowed it to drift freely through the air. The air was still save for the dance of the dust motes, with only the occasional clatter as rubble redistributed itself. A low croaking noise echoed up through a jagged gash in a metal wall, followed by the faint sound of wings fluttering. 

Tora eyed Duc’s shallowly breathing form, turning her head this way and that as she examined him. Her fledgling had woken briefly some time ago, long enough to drag himself out of the rubble that had partially trapped him and tend to some of his more pressing wounds before he fell into one of the deep healing sleeps his people were known for. He’d been sleeping for some time now, and Tora knew he would need to eat and drink soon. She flew over to him, bent down, and took hold of some of his oddly wispy head feathers before gently tugging, trying to rouse him. She adored him, but he was a lot of work to keep healthy.

It took a few tugs, but eventually Duc stirred, one hand ineffectually waving Tora away. He slowly pushed himself up into a seated position, all of his muscles protesting in concert. His stomach rumbled mightily, reminding him he needed to eat to keep up his strength as he continued to heal. Tora watched him eat and drink as needed, flying over to land on his shoulder once he was done. She preened at his hair, arranging the dirty strands more to her liking.

Duc reached up and wearily ran his fingers through Tora's feathers, drawing a content noise from her. He was glad she'd survived, as he'd no concrete idea how the bunker would hold up against the impact of the meteor. He looked up at the gaping hole in the ceiling of the room, eyeing it critically. Getting out would be one hell of a job, especially if he went that route, but there could be other options. He hadn't tried the actual door to the bunker yet, but having an alternate method of egress didn't hurt either.

He eventually roused himself enough to get up and carefully stretch his muscles so the stiffness didn't set in too badly. Duc walked around the bunker, Tora flying off to perch on a piece of piping that stuck out from one of the walls. He checked the door out on his ways past, but found his way blocked by a rockfall once he managed to get the door open. He'd have to climb out somehow, then. That would take some doing, but he wasn't going to stop until he got Tora and himself out.

Several long and hard days passed before Duc managed to secure safe passage out of the bunker for him and Tora. Getting her out was easy, as all she had to do was fly, but navigating himself out was a different story. He had to make sure the path he made would be stable enough to stand up against repeated trips, as he wasn't going to stay in the bunker permanently. It took several hours to move everything out, by the end of which his hands were rougher than they had been in ages. Duc didn't mind. A bit of blood and pain meant he had survived against all odds.

Cordesh was little more than broken rubble in the wake of the meteor landing barely a half mile away, with very few remnants of actual buildings standing. Duc holed up in one of the most intact ruins, arranging everything just so before he started his trek towards the foothills and clean water. He returned just as night fell, two heavy containers of water weighing down his arms. He'd have to make the trip again in a couple of days, perhaps less depending on how much work he would have to do to excavate the Temple of the Chosen, but that mattered very little to him. The long trips would be worth it if it meant keeping him alive in order to reach Leo and Minerva again.

Digging through the rubble brought back memories Duc had long fought to bury in his waking hours. He couldn't escape them in his dreams, his unconscious mind gleefully throwing the evidence of his failures and the taunting specters of his past into his face at every turn. Now, though- Now he saw them whether or not his eyes were closed, the burned, broken bodies of his once vibrantly alive family and friends watching him with sunken and soulless eyes. Duc stubbornly ignored them as he worked, chill winds plucking at his clothing and skin and sending shivers through his body.

It took Duc the better part of a month to clear a stable path to the innermost workings of the machinery beneath the Temple of the Chosen, and almost another month beyond that to get the device back up and running. The moment he got it back up and working, he rushed to gather his things. His visions as of late had been worrying. He'd seen both Minerva and Leo injured, not to mention the face of a woman he'd never seen before but knew would be important given her occupation.

Once everything was in place, Duc took time to change clothes, swapping out his everyday robes and trousers for the traditional uniform of a Miralavian warrior, even though he didn't feel quite worthy enough to wear it. His sleeveless bark brown under-tunic fit close around his torso and then flared out into a battle-skirt, the hem of which brushed over the tops of his sturdy boots. His over-tunic was a deep forest green, a belt around his waist providing places to hook much needed things like his scabbard and pouches of various sizes. One large pouch contained the case the recording crystals he'd salvaged rested in as well as the palm-sized reader necessary to display them.

Duc bound his hair back before putting on pieces of lightweight but durable metal armor that covered both sides of his torso and a set of vambraces for his forearms, the close-fitting fabric of his over-tunic providing padding against the harsher surface of the armor. His mask and goggles went on last. He looked up as he sheathed his sword in the scabbard at his side, the sound of wings and a caw from nearby drawing his attention.

“Tora. I don't- Fuck, I don't know what to do with you,” Duc said sadly. “I don't know if I can bring you with me, little one.”

Tora pecked experimentally at the small pack Duc had filled with some spare sets of clothes and what remained of his food before hopping up onto it and settling in quite contentedly. Duc took in a deep breath and let it out slowly as he contemplated the matter. If he didn't survive the trip, then neither would she, but if by some chance they both survived, he'd have a small piece of home with him, and that would be a blessing he wasn't about to turn down.

“Alright, fine, but you stay in the pack until it's safe,” he told her, moving her aside briefly so he could open the top of the pack and then put her inside. Once he was sure she was settled in and the top secure, Duc put the pack on, securing the buckles around his chest so it couldn't fall off no matter what happened. He started up the machinery, seeking out the face of the unknown woman he'd seen in his visions.

The pain of forging a new connection was a surprisingly welcome one, as it meant Duc could reawaken the bonds he already shared with Leo and Minerva. He got the immediate sense that Leo was badly hurt and Minerva in danger, which only compelled him to work faster. Once the connection with Sarah Drake was finished, Duc spoke, his tone urgent.

“Hi there, Doctor Drake. I don't have much time to explain, but I need your help.”

After a short but intense conversation with Sarah, Duc refocused his attention to Minerva. He opened the bond to her fully and then appeared behind her, just barely able to see the dim green form of Leo laying safely under the latticework of metal beams holding the satellite up.

“Minerva! You're okay! Fuck, it's so good to see you.”

Minerva turned away from checking on Leo, surprise radiating through every movement when she saw him. “Duc? How- Where the _hell_ have you been?”

“It's kind of a long story, but there's not much time,” Duc replied, glancing up at the satellite. “I'll tell you later, but right now I need you to start climbing up.”

“What?” Minerva looked up at the satellite as well. “Are you sure?”

“Deadly,” Duc replied. “Please, this is very important. Life- Life or death important.”

Minerva quickly checked Leo one last time before starting to climb up, eventually having to use Beacon to assist her. Duc re-centered himself once Minerva made it to the top, wincing at the sight of the four-armed being holding on to the base of the antenna on the satellite.

“Look, what's about to happen is going to be very weird, I'm not gonna lie to you, Minerva, but it can't happen if the Green Bank Telescope is destroyed. Stop that thing with extreme prejudice. Please.”

Minerva took hold of the two swords she'd carried up with her and then nodded. “Yeah. Alright. Stop it. I can do that.”

As Minerva busied herself with fighting the four-armed creature, Duc worked feverishly on his end, overclocking the transmitter to the max. The moment it was ready, he drew his sword, closed his eyes, and centered himself. A swift slash of his blade through the thick green beam that projected between the two massive crystalline plates in the ceiling and floor of the room saw a portal beginning to form.

“Minerva? This is going to hurt like hell, and I'm sorry, but there's no other way. Are you ready?” Duc asked. Minerva nodded, most of her focus still on the beast as it staggered away from her.

“Ready.”

Duc backed up to give himself enough space and momentum before beginning to run, his sword held at his side in a reverse grip in one hand so he couldn't accidentally harm himself or Minerva if- no, _when_ he landed. The portal rippled in the air in front of him, calling him to enter it. Duc gathered himself, pushed off the floor, and took a leap of faith.

_One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six-seven-eight-nine-and-_

The passage between worlds simultaneously took no time at all and all the time in the universe, stretching long and luxuriously like a lazy cat in a puddle of summer sunshine and galloping like a prize racehorse in the last lap all at once. Duc felt himself being pulled every which way, only his faith and determination that he would make it through and finally be somewhere that he could help others rather than harm them giving him the impetus to survive.

His boots hit the aluminum surface of the telescope at speed, making him skid a small distance until he caught his balance. Duc immediately brought his sword up into a ready position, shifting his grip on the hilt so he could better defend himself. The four-armed creature Minerva had been fighting kept coming forward, puffs of white light drifting away from it like smoke. Minerva readied herself to fight it as well, the two swords she'd been wielding held firmly in her hands, but the final blow never came to be.

The creature opened a rift in the air, brilliant white light pouring out of it as it tore through the fabric of time and space. A shockwave emerged from the rift barely half a minute after it opened, disintegrating the four-armed figure before the rift snapped shut once more. Duc slowly lowered his sword, eyes wide behind his protective gear.

The world of light beyond the rift had been strange and alien even to his eyes. He’d never seen machinery like that, not even at the height of his own planet’s scientific fervor. Duc sheathed his blade now that the danger had passed and then slowly sank down to sit on the satellite. The shifting of his pack against his back had him swearing quietly before he undid the buckles keeping it secured to his torso. He took the pack off and set it in his lap, his hands shaking from adrenaline and worry that Tora may have been hurt by the trip.

A broad smile broke out across Duc’s face when he saw that, aside for some ruffled feathers, Tora was alright. He barely noticed Minerva coming closer to him to see what he was doing, his attention focused on getting Tora free of her confines and looking her over. 

“Duc… why do you have a bird in your pack?”

Duc looked up as he cradled Tora in his hands. “This,” he said, running his thumbs lightly over Tora’s feathers, “is Tora. She’s a _ch’rac_ , and one of my oldest friends. She’s been with me for a very long time.”

“She looks like a very big crow,” Minerva mused before looking up sharply at the sound of sirens in the distance. “Oh, _fuck. Leo!_ ”

Duc scrambled to his feet, provoking an annoyed clacking from Tora’s beak. The two warriors peered over the edge of the satellite, letting out twin sighs of relief when they saw that Sarah was tending to a groggy Leo.

“Alright, now… how the hell are we getting down from here?” Minerva asked. Duc was about to respond when his attention was pulled away.

“Uh, Minerva?”

“Yes, Duc?”

Duc gently turned her to face the mountains, where a deep red light rolled over the top of one peak in particular, a large, dark shape floating some dozen or so feet above the ground.

“Is that normal weather on Earth?”

Minerva stared at the cloud, mouth hanging open.

“No, Duc, that is _definitely_ not normal.”

Barely a breath after she said that, the peak of Mount Kepler returned to its former position with a thunderous boom audible even from the Green Bank Telescope.

Duc and Minerva slowly made their way down the telescope scaffolding, Tora flying alongside them. She landed on Duc’s shoulder once his feet touched solid ground, her claws digging into the fabric of his over-tunic. Duc reached out and helped Minerva down as well, the corners of his eyes crinkling as he smiled at her. 

“Thanks,” she said, gently squeezing his hand before letting go. Duc nodded, his heart feeling oddly light as he went over to Leo. He knelt beside his Chosen, looking over him critically. 

“You look horrible,” Duc said, making Leo laugh roughly. 

“And you’re really here,” Leo replied. Duc took off his gloves and then rested one hand lightly against Leo’s neck, his fingers tingling at the contact while the other brushed against the ground.

“Yeah, I am. Hold still. I’m going to see if I can help.”

“You a healer too, bud?” Leo asked as Duc’s eyes went half-closed. Duc hummed softly, answering neither yes nor no. He followed the thread of the bond the two of them shared, guiding some of the ambient energy from the ground through the bond and into Leo’s body to help him heal. 

“I’ve learned a few tricks here and there,” he said, watching as more color returned to Leo’s face. “How’s that?”

Leo wiggled his hands and feet before cautiously sitting up, Sarah helping him get upright. “Good enough for me to get moving.” He reached out and placed a hand on Duc’s shoulder. Duc couldn’t help but shiver, the weight of another’s hand foreign after so long alone.

Leo gave him a knowing look and then let his hand slowly drop. Duc wasn’t sure if he wanted Leo to put his hand back or not, but he pushed it aside to focus on later. He looked over at Sarah.

“Is there somewhere we can take him to look him over more closely?”

“Uh… maybe back to the lab?” Sarah suggested. “There’s better lighting there.”

“I can help carry him,” Minerva said as Duc pulled his gloves back on. Duc shook his head. 

“I’ll do it. You look injured yourself.”

“I’m fine,” Minerva said, waving his concern off. Duc shot her an unimpressed glance as he helped Leo to his feet. The four of them made their way to the lab, Duc slinging Leo’s arm over his shoulder to better help him along.

When they arrived at the lab, Sarah assisted Duc with getting Leo on the couch. He stood back while she fetched a white box with a red symbol on the front from a back room and then began patching Leo up the rest of the way. Tora perched on the back of a chair as she watched the goings on, Duc running his fingers through her feathers and seeking comfort in the face of the unusual situation they had found themselves in.

He paused when he saw Minerva staring at him, his fingers falling still.

“What?”

“You’re… green. I wasn’t expecting that.”

Duc shrugged. “It’s what everyone on my planet is- _was…_ like,” he faltered. A frown formed as he looked around at his three Chosen. All of them had different skin tones, ranging from Minerva's deep brown to Leo's lighter tan to Sarah's pale peaches and cream complexion. All of them were colors found in nature, but nothing like his.

“Huh. I wasn't expecting to have to worry about that,” he said, rubbing at the back of his neck. He grimaced when the fingers of his glove caught on one of the buckles of his breathing mask. Duc hesitated, his thoughts shifting tracks abruptly. He wasn't on Miralaviniax any more. He didn't have to worry about ash choking his lungs with every breath, but he didn't know if he could breathe here on Earth, either. He stared down at the floor, his thoughts reaching an inevitable conclusion. There was only one way to find out.

Duc took a seat on the chair Tora was perched on, undid the buckles and straps that kept his protective gear on, and then slowly slid the breath mask and eye shield off, ready to put the former back on at the first sign of trouble. After all, Tora didn't seem to be having any problems with breathing the air on Earth, so hopefully he wouldn't either.

The first breath of actual clean air had Duc going still in his seat. He was so used to having air that tasted of ash and dust filling his lungs that he'd forgotten what it was like to breathe deeply and not be afraid of choking and gasping. His heart beat a vibrant rhythm against his breastbone as he cautiously continued to take measured breaths in and out, doing his best to get used to his new situation. A smile slowly illuminated his face as he acclimated to the new atmosphere he was breathing.

“Oh, _wow_ _._ I can actually breathe normally. This is great!”

The others looked over at him, surprise writ broad across all of their faces. Duc blinked, confused at the reaction.

“What?”

“Your... your voice,” Sarah replied, setting the first aid kid on a nearby table. “It's not...”

“It's not Darth Vader-ish any more,” Minerva said, quickly schooling her expression. “Huh.”

“That's going to take some getting used to,” Leo said, getting up from the couch with a quiet grunt, “but it's good to hear your real voice and see your face in person, Duc.”

He crossed the short distance between the two seating areas and then held out his hand to Duc. Duc removed his gloves before taking hold of Leo's hand and getting to his feet.

“You up for a hug?”

Duc steeled himself and then nodded. Leo embraced him, keeping his grasp loose so Duc could pull away if he wanted to. Duc slowly relaxed into the hug, bringing his arms around Leo's torso and resting his hands against the other man's back. He closed his eyes as an overwhelming and conflicting rush of emotions surged through him, his fingers tightening and wrinkling the fabric of Leo's jacket between them.

Movement to one side caught his eye, but it was only Minerva, who had come over with a concerned look. He spotted the Pine Guard patch on her coat, his stomach dropping. Duc let go of Leo, forcing his hands to relax. Right. They had other things to take care of. He could deal with his own issues later.

“Where are the rest of the Pine Guard?” he asked Minerva, who hesitated.

“I don't know. We should get back to the Lodge, but...” She worried at her bottom lip with her teeth. “With the way the mountain did... whatever it was that happened, it may not still be there.”

“Well, we can't exactly go out in public with Duc the way he is now,” Sarah pointed out. “With all the weirdness going on, God only knows what people would think of a green guy with a sword. No offense, Duc.”

“None taken,” Duc assured her. “Is there anywhere else we can go? I can put my hood up and get my gloves back on. It's still pretty dark, so we should be able to get around easily, right?”

“My delivery truck's pretty totaled,” Leo said. “Minerva, how'd you get here?”

“I took a service truck. We can go back in that. Uh, Sarah, you should probably just stay here for now. Keep an eye on the telescope and all that,” Minerva decided. A flash of relief passed across Sarah's face as she nodded.

“I can do that. You three stay safe. And don't just leave me hanging, alright? I don't know what the hell that thing was or what was going on with Mount Kepler, but I don't want to be left out of anything in the future.”

Duc grabbed his gloves and put them on before pulling up his hood. He held his arm out for Tora after putting his protective gear in his pack and then slinging that onto his back. The _ch'rac_ landed on his forearm, ruffling her wings before settling in. After Leo, Sarah, and Minerva exchanged contact information, Duc followed his first two Chosen out of the building and over to what he supposed was the service truck Minerva had talked about.

He climbed awkwardly into the cramped back seat, rearranging things so that his pack was at his feet and Tora was perched on his knee. Sarah waved them off, Duc watching her as the truck pulled away. She may be the newest of his Chosen, but that didn't make her safety any less important. The ride back to the apartment building was surprisingly smooth given the events of the night, and soon they were inside. Minerva stopped when she noticed a small box sitting on her doormat, confusion furrowing her brow.

“Duc, that has your name on it.”

Duc looked down at the box, back up at Minerva, and then shrugged before picking it up. He trusted Minerva when she said it had his name on it; while he could speak English, the written portion was still a mystery to him. He didn't open the box until the three of them were safely inside the apartment and sitting at Minerva's kitchen table. The box itself was plain, easily fitting in his palm and barely taller than two inches.

Duc picked up the object inside and held it up to the light, examining it. “A ring?”

“I guess?” Minerva looked down at the box and traced her fingers over the writing there. “Why does this look so familiar?”

While she puzzled over that, Duc took off his right glove and then, after some testing, slipped the ring onto his second-to-last finger. The moment the ring was in place at the base of his finger, a shimmer swept over his body, leaving in its wake faintly tan skin. Duc immediately took the ring off and set it on the table, breathing a sharp sigh of relief when he saw his normal skin tone reappear.

“What the fuck?” Leo snapped out, his eyes wide.

“Holy shit, that's-” Minerva grinned broadly. “I _knew_ that handwriting looked familiar. Duc, I think we've just figured out a way to hide you in plain sight. Sit down, you two. I've got to fill you in on some things. First of all, Mothman is real, and I've met him..."


	4. Ashes and Embers

After Minerva's story had finished, Duc found himself shut in her spare room, stripped of all his clothes and seeing just how extensive the effects of what Minerva had called a 'glamour ring' was. The scars he'd collected over his lifetime were still visible, the dull burn marks on his hands and forearms reminding him even in this form of his past. That was alright. He'd rather they not be hidden. He wouldn't be able to forget that way. His _glema_ , however, were hidden by the glamour, and he wasn't sure he liked that. His stark white fate marks may have been as much a reminder of his mistakes as the burns were, but he'd gotten used to seeing them every time he looked in a mirror and his face looked strange to him without them. His eyes were the same golden-brown they'd always been, which was a relief.

Human biology was odd, Duc discovered. He didn't _think_ his insides were any different due to the glamour, thank the stars, but the outside... He wasn't too sure about having genitalia that was outside his body and therefore vulnerable to the elements and attack, but he supposed he would get used to it eventually. He redressed, donning just his inner tunic and undergarments and leaving the rest of his clothes, armor, and boots in the spare room before he went out to rejoin the others.

“This is very strange,” he said, running a hand over his opposite arm. His skin felt mostly the same, though he could detect the faintest of resistance against his palm, as if the skin was drier than it looked.

“Yeah, but it means you can go out and not be immediately flagged as an outsider,” Minerva pointed out. A soft snore from Leo was all the older Chosen contributed to the conversation. He'd ended up sprawled out in Minerva's armchair and had promptly fallen asleep, finally giving in to his body's demands to rest and heal.

“I suppose, though you'll have to help me figure out my way around until-” Duc began, but was cut off by Minerva's front door opening. He backed up at the sight of ten or so bedraggled people, none of whom seemed particularly joyous to be there. Minerva zeroed in on a particularly devastated-looking young woman with some of the most vibrantly colored hair Duc had seen in a long time.

“Aubrey? What's-” Minerva paused and then looked over at the man who was helping Aubrey shuffle along. “Jake? What happened? Where's Mama? Where's Ned?”

The sound of the last name finally drew forth a rough noise from Aubrey, and it was one Duc was intimately familiar with. Grief, it seemed, sounded identical across the stars no matter the location.

Aubrey launched herself forward and wrapped her arms around Minerva, her fingers digging in sharply against the other woman's back. Duc watched as Minerva guided Aubrey over to the nearby couch and sat down there with her. Aubrey all but climbed into Minerva's lap, burying her face against Minerva's shoulder as she let her grief run free.

“There was an accident at the archway,” Jake said quietly as the others filtered in, one of them closing the door behind her. “Ned... Ned didn't make it.”

Duc felt like someone had punched him hard in the gut at the wounded sound Minerva made upon hearing that. He had only heard secondhand accounts about Ned from Minerva, often just small stories about the man and his escapades, but clearly he'd been an integral part of the makeup of the Pine Guard. Duc felt like he was intruding on things and quietly made his way to the spare bedroom, shutting the door near-soundlessly behind him. Tora was sleeping in a makeshift blanket-nest on a side table, her head tucked under her wing.

Duc sat down on the bare mattress of the guest bed and then took off his ring, setting it safely on the bedside table. He looked down at his hands, moving his fingers this way and that in his usual pattern of stretches and curls to keep them supple and flexible. He did the rest of his night-time stretches and then got ready for bed, doing his best to stay quiet as he did so. Murmurs drifted in under the gap between the bottom of the door and the carpet, though they were too quiet for him to tell exactly what was being said.

Eventually, the talking died down, leaving only silence in its wake. Duc laid back on the bed, moving around a bit until he was comfortable. He stared up at the ceiling as he waited for sleep to take him, drifting off to the sound of Tora's familiar quiet breathing and the gentle rush of the wind outside.

Duc rose with the sun the next morning, as was his habit. He jerked awake, expecting his lungs to drag in dust and ash with the air and finding himself pleasantly surprised and relieved when all he got was the latter. He got up, running a hand through the hair that had escaped from his braid overnight. Duc undid the braid and let the rest fall free, massaging his scalp to ease some of the tension there. He made sure to open the window just enough to allow Tora out if she wanted to fly free and explore, trusting that she would be able to find her way back to the apartment once she was done.

He got dressed in clean clothes, pulling on a pair of trousers, a loose short-sleeved shirt, and his glamour ring before opening the door. Most of the crowd from the prior night had left, though where to, Duc wasn't sure. Perhaps back to their own homes. Minerva and Aubrey were dead to the world on the couch, Aubrey still curled up against Minerva, who had her arms loosely wrapped around the younger woman.

Duc smiled sadly to himself before making his quiet way to the bathroom, glad that Minerva had shown him it the prior night, as well as the small closet with the towels and other linens in it. He grabbed two towels and then locked himself in the bathroom, taking care of his morning necessities before getting undressed and into the shower, his glamour ring safely placed on top of his clothes.

Getting thoroughly clean was _amazing_. It also felt weird to let so much water go down the drain, even if it was tainted with dust and grime from a now-alien planet. Duc wasn't sure which of the products in the bottles he could use for his hair, but at the very least, getting the dirt and ash off of his body was a step forward. He shut the water off (and stars above, having _hot_ water to use to wash with had been luxurious) and then dried off with one of the towels, using the other to soak up the excess water in his hair.

Duc dressed once more and put his ring on before pulling his hair back and doing it up in the proper mourning braid, murmuring the associated prayers and lamentations to himself in Mira as he did so. He had let it slide since it had only been him to witness the mourning, but now that he was among others, Duc felt shame well in his stomach if he didn't make the appropriate gestures, even if the others wouldn't recognize them. He made sure to add in a prayer for Ned before he tied off the braid. He may not have known the man, but he deserved to be mourned like the rest.

Once he'd finished, Duc put his towels on the drying rack and then left the bathroom, hoping he hadn't woken the others up. He stopped dead in his tracks, his confusion getting the better of him. When did a s _ira'ath_ make it to Earth, and why was it sitting in the middle of the walkway without a care in the world?

Duc crouched down and extended a hand to the long-eared animal, fingers curled towards his palm to protect them against biting. The _sira'ath_ sniffed him twice and then butted its head against his hand in a clear bid for attention. A pleased smile broke out across Duc's face as he gently ran his fingers through its soft fur, making himself comfortable on the floor with his back against a wall and his legs loosely crossed.

Apparently that was an invitation to cuddle, or so the _sira'ath_ thought, as it made its way into the cradle of his lap and settled in quite happily. Duc laughed quietly and recommenced his petting. He marveled at the trust he was being shown and the sheer softness of the fur beneath his fingers. He was used to rough and ash, not the blissfully soft fur of the animal in his lap.

Movement from the other side of the couch caught both of their attentions some ten minutes later, with the _sira'ath's_ long ears perking up before it hopped out of Duc's lap and around the couch. Duc got to his feet slowly and then moved over to sit at the kitchen table in time to see Aubrey and Minerva stirring. Minerva woke first, snapping to attention with a warrior's sharpness before relaxing. Aubrey woke more slowly, though the insistent nudges from Duc's erstwhile snuggling companion assisted in the matter.

“Doctor Harris Bonkers, PhD? When did you get here?” Aubrey mumbled, disentangling herself from Minerva and then scooping up her pet.

“I think Jake brought him over at some point,” Minerva said. “Last night is kind of a blur after y'all came in. I don't even think I saw Duc after-” She froze. “Oh, shit, _Duc_!”

Duc cleared his throat softly. “Over here, Minerva.”

The two women immediately focused on him, Minerva looking relieved and Aubrey very confused.

“Uh... Minerva, who the fuck is this?” she asked, holding Doctor Harris Bonkers closer to her chest.

“This is...” Minerva sighed, clearly trying to figure out the best way to introduce Duc. He took the decision off her hands when he got up from his chair and bowed shallowly to Aubrey.

“My name is Duc Nhuten, and I've had the honor of being Minerva's friend and tutor for quite some time,” he said as he straightened up. “I got here late last night, a little bit before you came here. I apologize for not introducing myself then, but I didn't think it'd be welcomed given the circumstances.”

“Yeah, no, that wouldn't have-” Minerva winced. “Anyways, Duc's going to be staying with me for a while. You can too, Aubrey, since the Lodge isn't exactly up for hosting anyone right now.”

Aubrey scowled at that before burying her face in Doctor Harris Bonkers' fur.

“It's stupid,” she mumbled. “They should just leave us all alone.”

Duc sat back down, not quite sure what to say. Minerva placed a hand on Aubrey's shoulder, squeezed lightly, and then got to her feet.

“I'll make us all breakfast and...” She blew out a slow stream of air as she ran a hand over her head. “...and figure out if you can even eat the food here, Duc.”

Duc shrugged. “I've got some food just in case, but it probably wouldn't hurt to see what I can and can't have.”

“How do eggs and waffles sound?” Minerva asked, heading to the kitchen and starting to rummage around in the cupboards and fridge. 

“Sounds as good as anything else.” Duc glanced over at Aubrey, who was still on the couch with her face pressed against Doctor Harris Bonkers’ fur. “How does that sound to you?”

Aubrey shrugged listlessly. A lopsided smile flashed across Duc’s face as he turned back to Minerva. “Looks like everyone’s fine with it. Do you want any help?”

Minerva pointed a spatula at him only half-threateningly. “I’m not makin’ you do any work when you’re a guest in my home, Duc Nhuten.”

Duc’s expression went fond when he heard the way Minerva's voice had softened out of its usual semi-formal tones and gone into a casual light drawl. “Alright, alright, I’ll leave it be… for now.”

“Damn right you will.”

As Minerva cooked the food, Duc got up and went over to the couch, taking a seat at the opposite end of the couch from Aubrey.

“What’s its name? I’ve got to tell you, I wasn’t expecting to see a _sira’ath_ here. It was a pleasant surprise.”

“A _sira_ - _what_ now?”

“ _Sira'ath,_ ” Duc repeated, making sure he went slowly for her benefit. “After I got done with cleaning up this morning, we came across one another. Apparently I was deemed worthy enough to be allowed to be a seat and to pet it.”

A watery laugh escaped Aubrey before she could stop it. She set Doctor Harris Bonkers on the couch between them, letting him sniff around there. “He’s a rabbit, and his name is Doctor Harris Bonkers, PhD,” she said.

Duc hummed. “That's a weighty name to carry around,” he mused as he held out his hand for the rabbit to sniff at, “but I think it suits him.”

He ran his fingers through Doctor Harris Bonkers' fur, earning a pleased nose wiggle. Aubrey reached out and pet the rabbit as well, looking more relaxed as time went on. Duc saw her glancing at the burn scars on his hands from time to time, but noticed that she was holding back on questioning him about them.

“Everything okay?” he prompted after a while.

“Huh? Oh, uh... yeah. Just... what happened to your hands, if you don't mind me asking?” Aubrey asked, letting her hand fall still.

“They're some of the consequences of a mistake I made a long time ago,” Duc said quietly, keeping his eyes on Doctor Harris Bonkers as he continued to pet him. “I've learned to live with them.”

“Oh.” Aubrey hesitated before reaching out and lightly running her fingers over the back of Duc’s hand. “That must’ve been hard. I’ve…I’ve lost things to fire too.”

“Fire can be a useful tool, but it can harm as easily as it can help,” Duc agreed. Before they could talk further, Minerva interrupted.

“Breakfast’s ready!” she called out. “It’s just scrambled eggs and frozen waffles, but I haven’t really had the time to get to the grocery store recently.”

“That’ll be fine, Min,” Aubrey said as she got up from the couch. Duc followed after her, and soon the three of them were gathered around the table with their food in front of them.

“So, Duc, where’re you from?” Aubrey asked. Duc picked up the four-tined utensil he’d observed Minerva using to eat her eggs before answering. 

“You’re part of the Pine Guard, right?”

Aubrey nodded.

“Then you’re aware of other planets. I come from a place called Miralaviniax Orbital Body Number Five,” Duc continued on, scooping up some of his eggs. He kept them plain for now, though the spicy concoction Minerva had spooned onto hers looked intriguing. “It’s a very long way from here. I arrived last night through a wormhole.”

“And gave me one hell of a headache in the process,” Minerva added.

“I _did_ warn you. Anyways, I’ve been training Minerva off and on for the last year or so. We’ve known one another since she was eighteen.” Duc cautiously put his forkful of eggs into his mouth and then chewed them contemplatively. “Hm. Not bad. We had avians back home and used their eggs for food as well, and these aren’t much different.”

“Speaking of avians, where’s Tora?” Minerva asked.

“She was still sleeping last I checked, but I left the window open for her in case she wanted to fly and explore,” Duc said. 

“Tora?” Aubrey repeated with an intrigued look.

“She’s a _ch’rac_ ,” Duc said. “Minerva compared her to an over-large crow, I think it was?”

Aubrey grinned. “Sweet. Think I can meet her soon?”

“I’ll check on her after the meal and then I’ll introduce you two. She should probably meet Doctor Harris Bonkers, PhD, as well. She won’t hunt him or anything like that, but it wouldn’t hurt for them to get to know one another.”

A sparkle of delight lit up Aubrey’s eyes at that. Duc found he quite preferred it over the sadness that still lingered at the edges of her expression.

“Definitely. He’s usually pretty chill with people and other animals. That’s what makes him such a great pet and show assistant, y’know?”

“Show assistant?” Duc took the jar of the spicy mix Minerva had put on her eggs and then put a small spoonful of its contents on the side of his plate so he could try it. 

“Oh, yeah, Doctor Harris Bonkers is my assistant. I do- well, _did_ magic shows.” Aubrey waved one hand idly. “That was before I joined the Pine Guard. It was a good way to make money. I didn’t think I was using real magic, though. That’s actually how I met Mama.”

“I’d wondered about that. How’s the salsa, Duc?”

Duc put a little bit of the salsa on his eggs and then tried the combination. The bright flavors zipped across his tongue in a flash, making his eyes grow wide. He hadn’t had anything as flavorful as this in _years_. He quickly spread the rest of the salsa across his eggs and dug in happily.

“I think he likes it,” Aubrey said, amused. Minerva chuckled. 

“There’s plenty where that came from. If you want anything for the waffle, let me know. I don’t think salsa would go well with it, however.”

Duc made an affirmative noise, too focused on eating the unexpectedly delicious food in front of him to bother with actual words. The waffle was alright, he supposed, though rather bland. Minerva offered him some jam, but Duc passed up on it, idly wishing he could put salsa on the waffle. That stuff was _good_. Earth certainly seemed to know its way around flavors, and he couldn’t wait to experience more.

Aubrey helped Minerva put the plates in the dishwasher, eager to keep herself busy in some way. Duc understood that feeling. Grief was often crippling, and keeping active tended to help keep it at bay. She would have to face her grief at some point, though; otherwise, it could fester and cause a deeper wound than what it already had.

Duc went into the guest room, nodding in approval when he saw that Tora had already left and returned, if her wind-ruffled feathers were anything to go by.

“ _Have a good flight?_ ” he asked, the rise and fall of Mira feeling odd against his tongue and lips after continually speaking English for so long. Tora croaked at him before beginning to preen herself. “ _I have some friends here that want to meet you, by the way. We didn’t get that chance last night._ ”

Tora made a churring noise, tweaking a few feathers here and there before deciding things were as settled as they would ever be and then focusing on Duc, who had his arm outstretched towards her in invitation. She regarded him for a long moment and then made her way over to him with a sharp hop and a flapping of wings. Duc ran his fingers through her feathers as he left the guest room.

Aubrey was on the couch again, flipping through a glossy magazine. She looked up when Duc cleared his throat. 

“ _Veydanei_ Little, this is Tora, the _ch’rac_ I was telling you about.”

“Duc, you don’t have to-” Minerva sighed. “Aubrey, he’s not gonna call you by your first name unless you give him permission. The only reason he called me by my first name when he and I initially met was because of the Chosen bond we share.”

Aubrey blinked, surprised. “What? Oh, yeah, feel free to call me Aubrey, Duc. What does _Veydanei_ mean?”

Duc hummed, thinking. “It translates roughly to ‘welcomed friend’ in English,” he said, “but I’d be more than happy to call you Aubrey. It’s a lovely name. Would you like to touch Tora?”

He held out his arm at about chest height, letting Aubrey see Tora properly. She set her magazine aside and got up, reaching out cautiously to brush her fingers over Tora’s feathers. Tora looked curiously at her before leaning in and gently tugging on a lock of Aubrey’s brightly colored hair with her beak, making the young woman laugh.

“Oh, yeah, fair warning, she likes to groom hair,” Duc told her with a chuckle. “And if you lose anything shiny, let me know and I’ll grab it from her nest.”

“Will do.” Aubrey pet Tora a few more times before stepping away. “Minerva, do you know if Jake brought my stuff from the Lodge as well?”

“Possibly,” Minerva said, glancing around the apartment. “We’ll have to ask. I think he went to sleep at Leo’s place, as well as some of the others. I don’t know where Barclay and Dani are.”

“We’ve got to go looking for them!” Aubrey said immediately. “What happened with Dani? Why wasn’t she there?”

“I don’t know, Aubrey. I wasn’t there, remember?” Minerva reminded her, her voice gentle. “All I know is that I didn’t see them last night. We’ll have to ask Jake and the others.”

Aubrey nodded, her earlier good humor fading in the face of her worry. “Can we go ask them now? I won't be able to concentrate until we do.”

“Sure. Just wait a minute and I'll get some shoes on. You should do the same. I'm not gonna let you go over there barefoot.”

Aubrey rolled her eyes. “Yes, _Mom_ ,” she teased, though to Duc it seemed more out of habit than anything else. While Aubrey went to figure out where her shoes went the prior night, Duc trailed after Minerva to her bedroom, lingering in the open doorway.

“Minerva, if Aubrey's going to be staying here too, she should have the other bedroom,” he said, pitching his voice so only Minerva could hear it. “I can find another place to sleep.”

“Duc, I'm not going to force you to give up that bedroom,” Minerva said just as quietly.

“You're not. I'm insisting,” Duc countered. “I've slept on worse things than a couch or even the floor. Aubrey shouldn't be made to do that. I'll move my things while you two are out.”

Minerva looked like she was going to protest again, but stopped when she saw the stubborn set of Duc's face. She gave in, though not without a pointed look that she directed at him.

“If you need anything- and I mean _anything_ -you tell me, alright? Don't be unreasonably stubborn.”

Duc pushed away from the door-frame where he'd been leaning and nodded. “I'll do my best.”

Minerva pulled on a pair of beat up sneakers, only loosely tying the laces before getting to her feet. “Right. Let's get moving.”

Duc moved back so she could leave the room and then said his goodbyes to the two women as they left the apartment. Once they were gone, he gathered his meager belongings from the guest room and moved them to the living room, putting them in an unused corner. With that done, he stripped the pillow, blankets, and sheets from the guest bed and set them on the couch, not wanting to leave them for Aubrey to have to use after him. He replaced them with fresh ones from the closet, glad he'd remembered seeing them earlier.

It felt good to make the bed for Aubrey. Duc knew it was a small part of a greater scheme of things, but it still meant one less thing she had to worry about. He smoothed the blankets neatly into place just in time to hear the apartment door open and close again. Duc poked his head out of the guest room to see Minerva returning sans Aubrey.

“Everything okay?”

Minerva ran a hand over her head, trying to come up with the best words to say. “Not entirely,” she managed finally, “but I've got to believe they will be.”

Duc nodded. That was all that any of them could hope for, really, given their current circumstances.

Over the next three weeks, Duc began to notice a pattern when it came to Aubrey. She seemed to be relatively fine most days, especially after they'd gotten Dani and Barclay safely back, but one day of the week in particular had her going more melancholy than usual. When he asked Minerva about it, he'd gotten an explanation of the television show Ned had once hosted.

“It was always on Saturdays,” Minerva had told him as she minced some fresh garlic cloves for a pot of spaghetti sauce. “Nine o'clock sharp in the evening. It wasn't all that award-worthy or anything, but it was still a part of Ned that everyone loved and that he was truly willing to share with us.”

“Let me know when Saturday comes around again,” Duc said. “I'm still working on the whole writing thing. Maybe a symbol or something on your calendar?”

Minerva paused in her work and then set down her knife. “What're you planning, Duc Nhuten?”

“Hopefully something that'll help her, even if it's just a little. Would you be willing to help me?”

Minerva nodded in agreement and then returned to her work. “Sure, I'll mark the calendar. Let me know if you need anything else, okay?”

Duc hadn't needed anything he couldn't get on his own, and when he saw the star-shaped symbol lurking on the calendar the fourth week after his arrival, he sought out Aubrey, a small plastic shopping bag held in one hand that contained the necessary supplies. She was sitting in her room, reading a book while Doctor Harris Bonkers, PhD, slept on the bed next to her. Aubrey looked up when Duc knocked on the half-open door, the late afternoon sun making her orange eyes appear brighter than usual.

“Duc? Everything okay?”

“I'm fine,” Duc replied. “Are you doing anything important right now? I was hoping to go for a walk with Minerva, but she's out with some of the others and I'd rather not get lost in the forest around here.”

That had been a startling sight to see. Duc hadn't seen so much leafy green in so long that he'd nearly cried at the sheer beauty of it all the first time he'd seen the forest in daylight. Luckily, only Minerva and Leo had been there. Since they both knew what he'd been through, neither had judged him. Not that he'd expected them to, but it was still comforting to know that they were willing to stand by his side and support him even after all he'd done.

Aubrey considered his request for a moment and then set aside her book. “Sure, why not? I should probably get out of the apartment anyways. Mind if I bring Doctor Harris Bonkers, PhD?”

“Of course not. Tora will probably come with us anyways. She usually likes going flying this time of day,” Duc said. Aubrey laughed as she got ready and then scooped up Doctor Harris Bonkers from the bed. The rabbit and Tora had struck up an odd sort of friendship in the time they'd lived in the same space, and usually could be found within a few feet of one another or less save for when Aubrey had Doctor Harris Bonkers in her room.

They left the apartment about ten minutes later, Tora soaring ahead of them. Duc had already scouted out a suitable area a few days prior when it was his and Sarah's turn for patrol, making a mental note of the path to get there. He let Aubrey lead the way, mentioning he'd seen something he wanted to look at in greater detail. She gamely walked along with him, her pet held securely in her arms until they reached their destination.

Duc stopped Aubrey when they reached a small creek a good distance into the forest, taking a seat on a log near the water. Aubrey sat near him, letting Doctor Harris Bonkers wander around the nearby area but still keeping an eye on him just in case.

“This is nice,” she said, breathing in the fresh air and listening to the burble of the water nearby. Duc hummed and then started rummaging around in his bag, taking out ten bundles of long blades of grass that he'd already knotted at one end, making sure there were at least three strands per bundle. Aubrey looked over when she heard the rustling, confusion warring with intrigue.

“What're those for?”

“These,” Duc said as he counted out five and then laid them aside, keeping the rest, “are for something I was hoping you'd help me with.” He took in a deep breath and then let it out slowly before continuing on. “I... Back on- on Miralaviniax, we had this tradition after someone died. We'd tell stories of them and weave grass into braids to catch the stories as they were told. We'd then either burn the finished braids or release them into the nearest river as the sun set to let their stories be carried off to the stars. The only problem was, after... well. I was the only survivor of something that shouldn't have happened in the first place, so I didn't have anyone to tell the stories to, and lovely as she is, Tora doesn't count. I thought... maybe you'd like to join me in this to honor Ned. I've only heard bits and pieces about him here and there. You don't have to join in if you don't want to, of course. I-”

Duc stopped his rambling when he felt Aubrey place a hand on his arm.

“Duc, I'd be honored to listen to your stories, and-” Her fingers curled against the bare skin of his arm (he'd only been wearing jeans and a t-shirt since the weather had warmed considerably recently), pressing against him momentarily before relaxing and falling away. “-and I think Ned would like it if I told you stories about him. He was always telling us stories of his past. I don't know how many of them were true, but I'll tell you about the man I was lucky enough to work with, as long as you tell me about those you've lost. Is there anything special we need to do to start it off right?”

Duc handed her the five bundles he'd separated out and then cleared his throat. “Uh, yeah. Just-- give me a second; I need to remember the words right so I can translate them into English.”

He closed his eyes, slowly running the Mira words through his mind and then shifting them over to English. When he was sure he had them as correct as possible, Duc opened his eyes, his posture unconsciously shifting to the straight-backed recital form he'd learned as a child.

“Listen, o Guardians of the Water, of the Earth and Flame and Wind! Listen, o beasts that fly and run and swim! Listen now to the tales of those newly joining the song of the stars, and hold them fast in every beat of your hearts and breath of your lungs. Let these words be carried to all points across the world, so that all may know of those who have gone before us.”

Duc let out a shuddering breath as he finished speaking, his emotions getting the better of him. He hadn't expected he'd ever get to say those words in any form, let alone under the pink and gold tinged sky of another planet. Aubrey let him settle himself before beginning to speak, slowly but surely weaving her first bundle of grass into a neat braid.

“I first met Ned the same night I met Mama,” she began. “Well, that's the first night I _remember_ meeting him. We, uh, we actually met a while back, but I didn't realize it then...”

Duc listened to her as she talked, taking over with his own story about his parents and his sister when she reached the end of her first braid. They swapped stories with every braid, Aubrey adding in one about her mother for the last tale she told. When the final braid was done, Duc held out a hand to Aubrey, his palm facing upwards.

“The second to final part is to swap braids,” he said. “It's supposed to symbolize the sharing of burdens. Grief is easier when shared, Aubrey Little, and if left to be carried alone, can drag you down until you don't want to move at all. Trust me, I know how it is.”

Aubrey smiled sadly and then laid her braids carefully in Duc's empty hand before holding her hands out for his braids. “Yeah, I guess... I guess you're right. And the final part?”

Duc checked the sky, noting with satisfaction that the sunset was nearly done and the sky overhead beginning to be stained a dark blue that was quickly fading to black. “And now we release them into the water.”

He led the way over to the creek, making sure not to trip over Doctor Harris Bonkers, who was dozing nearby. The two of them laid their braids in the water and then watched the current slowly whisk them away until they were out of sight.

“Hey, Duc?”

“Yes, Aubrey?”

“Can I have a hug?”

While he was still having issues with prolonged close contact, for Aubrey, Duc was willing to make a concession, especially given how drained she looked in the twilight. He held out his arms to her, welcoming her into his embrace. She took the invitation eagerly, wrapping her arms around his torso. He made no mention of the tears he could feel dampening his shirt, and when she stepped away, smiled warmly at her.

“Let's get back home. Minerva promised to pick up curry again for dinner and she said she was going to find something new for me to try.”

Aubrey laughed as she brushed tears away from her cheeks. “What is it with you and curry, anyways?”

Duc's smile gained a bittersweet tinge to it. “It reminds me of a dish from back home.”

“Oh!” Aubrey looked thoughtful and then scooped up Doctor Harris Bonkers. “I wonder if we can figure out a way to make something that's close to that dish.”

Duc pulled out a flashlight from his bag and then looped the handles of said bag over his other wrist. “You know what?” he said as they started off, “I'd like that.”

And if Minerva shot him a grateful look as the three of them and Dani shared a truly delicious and lively meal of curry, rice, and vegetables for dinner that night, Duc wasn't going to say anything. He might not like fire all that much, but he wasn't about to see Aubrey's spark go out.


	5. I See Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All recognizable dialogue (c) TAZ/the McElroys. Also holy heck, this chapter fought me to no end.

Duc sat up sharply, his startled movements disturbing Tora and Doctor Harris Bonkers from their slumber. The two animals had become his mostly constant sleeping companions over the past two months, with Doctor Harris Bonkers often tucking himself in the crook of Duc’s arm or small of his back while Tora liked to perch on Duc’s shoulder or upper back depending on how he had initially laid down. Tora relocated to the back of the couch while Doctor Harris Bonkers hopped off the couch and onto the floor with an annoyed thump of his hind legs.

Duc rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, his mind still caught on the dream-visions that had woken him up. The teeth dream seemed to be just a standard nightmare (he highly doubted all his teeth were going to fall out of his mouth with no warning like that) but the second... that one was an actual vision he needed to pay attention to. He rubbed at his jaw as he contemplated the vision he'd had. He needed to talk to someone about it, and while he hated waking her, Minerva was the closest person.

Duc got up from the couch (behind him, Doctor Harris Bonkers immediately stole his spot, settling into the warm impression Duc had left behind) and went over to Minerva's door, knocking gently.

“Minerva? Are you up?”

“Duc? Wh- oh, yeah, come on in.”

Duc opened the door, his bare feet quiet against the carpeted floor. Minerva was sitting up in her bed, her blankets pooled around her waist.

“Hey. Uh, I know this probably sounds stupid, but did you just have a weird dream? Well, technically two?” Duc asked.

“Oh, that teeth dream?” Minerva asked. “Yeah, that was strange, but I don't think it's going to come true. That other dream, though...”

“I don't think it was a dream,” Duc said. “I'm pretty sure that was a vision, and we'd be wise to take heed of it. I'm not sure how we'll be able to change it, but it's-”

“Hey, Minerva, is it okay if I take the last waffle? Also, Leo's here!” Aubrey called out from beyond the door. Duc hadn't realized she was up as well, but it wasn't like it was stupidly early in the morning, either, so he wasn't surprised she was awake.

Minerva sighed and then pushed back her blankets, revealing that she was only wearing a pair of shorts and a tank-top. Duc blushed faintly as he stepped back, glad for the dimness of the room. Living with Minerva in such close quarters for the past two months had stirred up some confusing and conflicting feelings for Duc, and he was doing the best to keep them to himself and under control. She had already given him so much just by putting a roof over his head and food in his stomach; she didn't need the added complications of his fumbling attempts at emotions, especially when he couldn't even fully quantify those emotions himself.

Duc left the room, joining Leo and Aubrey in the main area of the apartment. Aubrey was busy toasting her waffle, while Leo was sitting at the kitchen table, looking about as awake as Duc felt. Minerva joined them a few minutes later, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt. It wasn't long before they learned that Leo had had the same dream. 

After a quick discussion, the four of them decided to head out to the Cryptonomica to confer with those who might be able to help them and plan out what to do in order to divert the path of the vision and the possible destruction of Earth. Before they left, Duc changed into his warrior’s garb and armor and made sure his sword was at the ready, not knowing if they’d be back to the apartment before everything went down.

Duc stood back as the others threw ideas around once they'd settled in at the Cryptonomica, only half-listening to the various plans that were proposed and then tossed out. Minerva stood back from the table as the conversation wound to a close, a contemplative look on her face.

“Alright, let me see if I have this correct,” she began. “It seems like we've got to get the Hornets on our side to help with distracting the FBI so we can possibly get Agent Stern back on our side, and then we can maybe get Mama back from wherever they've stashed her, and then we can go over to Sylvain. Does that sound right to everyone?”

Duc was about to answer when a voice he'd never heard before chimed in from near the doorway while a sketchbook landed open and face-up on the floor in the middle of their gathering, its pages covered in drawing after drawing of Kepler's destruction in various methods.

“Yes, and it's a fine plan, folks, but it could probably use a bit more work.”

Duc looked up to see one of the strangest people he'd ever encountered standing in the doorway, and he was including himself in that list. The... man? Being?- whatever he was, Duc didn't think he was human, even if he mostly looked it -strode forward and stepped into the center of the room before turning to Minerva and Aubrey.

“Aubrey, Minerva, it's uh, it's good to see you. I'm so sorry about Ned. If I had seen that coming, please trust that I would've contacted you earlier,” he said.

“Oh, uh, yeah. Indrid, none of us...” Minerva sighed. “None of us saw it coming, either. You doing alright?”

“I'm fine. Better than I was, but if we don‘t do anything else, I'm going to be pretty dead tonight, as will everybody. Hey, uh...”

He leaned in close to Aubrey and Minerva, and Duc could just hear him say, “Uh, is everybody here cool?”

“You mean, like are they narcs?” Aubrey asked.

“I mean, are they _cool_?” Indrid continued on. Minerva and Aubrey shared a glance before understanding lit up the former's face.

“Oh! Um, yeah, it's... that whole veil has been thoroughly lifted away,” she said with a grimace. “Everyone here is cool.”

“Um, well, okay, that might expedite things,” Indrid said, and then turned to the others. “Hey, everyone, I'm the Moth Man.”

He took off the red-tinted glasses he wore, causing Duc to swear harshly in Mira as the change overtook the other man. All three of his parents would've chastised him sharply if they'd heard what he said, but as it was, Duc felt rather justified given the fact that Indrid greatly resembled some of the higher-level commanders of the Swarm, albeit a lot more fluffy around the wings and face. The horrifying vision only lasted a few seconds until Indrid put his glasses back on somehow, but Duc still was shaken to his core.

He took a seat on the nearest chair, the conversation the others were having little more than background static as he tried to reconcile what he'd seen against what he knew of the Swarm. His people's enemies were all dead and gone, and had been for a very long time. He'd been the one to deliver their destruction, after all. The others didn't seem too surprised about Indrid's true appearance; indeed, both Minerva and Aubrey were rather blasé about the whole thing.

Duc was only dragged out of his shock-induced stupor when he heard Minerva mention his name.

“Alright, I had a vision, and I know I haven't really put a lot of stock in them in the past given how, uh, how bad they've been but this one... Duc, you opened a lot of different rift-portal things all at once,” she said. “Maybe that'd help relieve a lot of the pressure?”

Duc blinked a few times as he considered the idea. “I... I guess I could open several rifts to Sylvain, but I-- I'd need some kind of knowledge about where it is. I'd need some sort of link to that world.” He rubbed at the back of his neck as he thought. “The easiest way to do that would be to do it at the archway. We'd have to time it perfectly with the opening of the gate, but it's possible I could do it. I'm worried about all the Quell that would still come out, which means the rifts would have to be put somewhere defensible and preferably within my line of sight or somewhere I'm at least somewhat familiar with. I can open a lot of them all at once, but I'll need a good vantage point to do that properly.”

He let his hand drop back into his lap, keeping his eyes fixed firmly on Minerva and well away from Indrid. “Even with being here for two months, I don't know the town as well as those who've been here longer than me. Finding those defensible places and their defenders definitely sounds like a task for the locals, right? I'm just... I'd be in the way.”

“You're not going to be in the way,” Minerva said, frowning at him. Duc shrugged. It wasn't exactly like he was lying, after all. He didn't have the connections that the others did with the other inhabitants of the town. 

He stayed behind in the Cryptonomica with Barclay and a few of the others, going over a map of Kepler and the surrounding area with Barclay. Duc steadfastly ignored Indrid’s continued presence as they worked, though the knowledge that Indrid was still there lurked at the edges of his mind like a skittish cat on a busy street. He kept his back to a wall as much as he could, doubting Indrid would suddenly attack him but still not trusting him not to do so, either.

When those who had gone out to convince the town to fight had returned, Duc straightened up, his back complaining at him for having been bent over for so long. He ignored it, stretching out his muscles as he looked around. He frowned when he didn’t immediately see Minerva. That was strange. He could’ve sworn he’d just seen her.

His confusion was alleviated somewhat when Minerva appeared on the staircase that led down from the upper level of the building, an odd expression on her face as she readjusted Beacon’s coiled form where he was clipped to her belt.

“Minerva? Are you okay?” he asked quietly when she drew near him.

“As good as I’ll ever be, I suppose,” Minerva replied, matching his volume. “How’s, uh, how’s everything here been? Got it all planned out?”

“As much as we can,” Duc said. He glanced down at the map with a sigh. “We've figured out what the best places will be given what sightlines I'll have from the gate. It won't be much, but hopefully it'll be enough.”

Minerva placed a careful hand on Duc's shoulder to comfort him, squeezing lightly. He was proud that he didn't flinch away as he once may have done; the two months in near-constant contact with others had helped him with the sensitivity to touch he'd gained from being isolated for so long.

“I've got faith in you, Duc. We're going to get through this together, just wait and see.” She checked her watch, humming as she noted the time. “We've got to get a move on soon if we want to make it to the gate in time. Help me collect the others?”

Duc nodded and went to do as requested, still curious about what Minerva had been doing before she'd joined him but deciding to ask her about it later. They had more important things to focus on, anyways.

There were eight of them that made the trip through the woods that night, the rest of the defenders dispersing to their assigned posts. Duc stayed at Minerva's side throughout the trip, not wanting to stray too far from her or Thacker as the two of them were leading the way to the FBI outpost. The fence in their path as they neared the Lodge was unexpected, as was the method they eventually used to bypass it. 

Duc wasn't going to say anything against Barclay using his greater strength to barrel through the chain-link and creating a path for them to take, though it was very amusing to watch him push through it like it was nothing. Aubrey fired off the flare to signal the Hornets before she followed Barclay through the hole in the fence.

Seeing Amnesty Lodge for the first time in its unkempt state was disheartening, especially when Barclay’s reaction was taken into account. 

“Big guy… I promise, once this is over, a new coat of paint and we’re back,” Aubrey said, “but… I think it’s time to keep moving.”

Barclay took in a shuddering breath. “Yeah. I guess no matter what happens…” He laughed roughly. “I guess Amnesty Lodge has served its purpose. Let’s… let’s go.”

“Hands! Hands! Now! Hands where I can see them!”

Duc turned to see a guard with a rifle pointing at them. He didn’t think; his feet were carrying him in a rush towards the guard before he even truly conceptualized the thought. The two of them slammed together, Duc grunting sharply when he felt the butt of the rifle hit the underside of his jaw. They fell to the ground, Duc rolling off the guard and shaking off the hit while the guard sprawled on the ground in an unconscious heap.

“Duc! You okay?” Minerva asked, hurrying over to him to help him up.

“Huh? Yeah, I’m good.” Duc took a step and then stumbled when he felt something give under his boot. He looked down to see the crumpled remnants of the guard’s radio.

“Aw, shit. Sorry. We could’ve used that.”

Minerva laughed. “Don’t worry about it, Duc. I-”

She paused when she heard yelling nearby. It seemed like the other guards had noticed their fallen comrade’s missing presence. Before the guards could get too far, however, the roar of motorcycle engines split the air. 

The Hornets had arrived.

  


With the distraction underway, the eight of them made their way through the forest and to the large tent-like structure the FBI had set up around the gate. Duc stood back and watched the others briefly debate the best way to open the door before Aubrey used her magic- far more successfully than she had at the fence -to shock the keypad keeping the door closed into shorting and then opening up. He took in a deep breath and then turned to Minerva.

“It's, uh, it's time for me to head out and get in place. Can I... Can we talk real quick?”

Minerva frowned at him but nodded regardless. Duc guided her several dozen feet away from the others, one hand cupping her elbow until they reached a good spot. When they'd come to a halt, Duc readied himself before speaking.

“Look... I just wanted to say that it's been an honor being by your side. I don't know what's going to happen tonight, especially not in there, but I do know that whatever happens, my life has been richer for having you in it. Even when I was blinded by my own fear and ran away from fucking _everything_ , the knowledge that you were still alive helped to keep me from fully turning to the darkness and letting it consume me. I...” Duc sighed. “Just... good luck, my _ernurav._ ”

Minerva stared at him for a long moment and then swept him into a tight hug, one that Duc returned wholeheartedly. “When all of this is said and done,” she said as they parted, “you're giving me a lesson in Mira, you got it?”

Duc laughed, doing his best to ignore the way his chest tightened as he took in her face for what might be the last time. “Yeah, alright.” He turned to look at the others. “Leo, you ready?”

His first Chosen turned away from the others, a grim look on his face. “Ready as I'll ever be. Let's get goin' before we run out of time. Minerva, Sarah... good luck in there.”

“Thanks, Leo. Take care of yourself, alright?” Minerva replied. Leo smiled tersely.

“I always do.”

Duc and Leo headed off and away to the jagged plateau that had once been the peak of Mount Kepler, skirting around the FBI's encampment and dodging the still-roving pack of motorcyclists and the agents chasing after them. The climb up the ruined mountainside was rough, but eventually they reached their destination. The valley below looked so peaceful from their vantage point, but Duc knew it wasn't to last.

He drew his sword and then settled in on a boulder to wait for Minerva's signal, his hands resting on the pommel of his sword as he looked out over the town below. Leo sat nearby on a boulder of his own, keeping an eye on his watch.

“You really think this'll work?”

Duc glanced over at Leo, more than a little surprised at the question. “I certainly hope so. Why do you ask?”

“It just seems a bit of a stretch, y'know? So many moving parts and no guarantee it'll work.”

Duc snorted softly. “It's no worse than some of the plans we've made over the years. Remember that hunt in Queens? That giant Black Dog?”

Leo groaned. “Don't remind me. I've still got the scars from that thing on my good leg, and it's the reason I swore off meat. Do you know how much I miss steak still?”

“It worked, though,” Duc pointed out. “You can't deny that, even if-”

He broke off when he saw the spectral form of Minerva appear in front of him. Duc hadn't realized she'd been practicing that technique, but he wasn't about to question it at such a crucial time.

“Is it time?”

“Just about,” Minerva replied. Duc got to his feet and readied his sword. He took a deep breath in, let it out slowly, and when Minerva gave the word, sliced windows between worlds to let their enemy through.

  


Duc fought back to back with Leo, their swords flashing through the air as they battled against the blood-red beasts that had poured out of the rift along with thick fog. The familiar rhythms of slice, stab, and parry carried them through the fight, though going against the Quell beasts was far different to sparring against other humanoid beings. Even with their training, neither man had escaped wounds. Duc bore several bite marks on his arms where the bracers hadn't been able to fully shield him, and Leo wasn't much better off, though the gashes across his torso where an eerily long-clawed cat-like beast had swiped at him were relatively shallow in comparison.

Duc pulled his sword free of a beetle-like foe, grimacing at the squelching noise that accompanied the loosing of his blade. The Quell seemed never-ending, and even with his greater endurance and strength, Duc could feel himself starting to flag. He sent up a prayer to any higher power that might be listening, be that Earth-, Sylvain-, or Mira-based, that the fight would be over soon and they could rest.

He turned to check on Leo when there was a lull in the fighting, glad to have a moment to breathe and recuperate, even if it was only for the space of a few breaths.

“Leo? How're you doing?”

“Wishin' I was just about anywhere but here, but, y'know, if wishes were horses and all that,” Leo panted, flexing his fingers in an attempt to get the feeling back into them.

“Don't think I've heard that one,” Duc said, watching the rift warily even as he stretched out his own hands and limbs. “What do wishes have to do with horses?”

“Not sure it's really the time, but it pretty much goes, 'If wishes were horses, beggars would ride'. A short way of sayin' wishing for something isn't gonna make it happen, because if it did, everyone would have everything they wanted,” Leo replied. The rift shimmered in midair for a solid minute without any new monsters coming through before disappearing, making the two warriors perk up.

“Is... Is it over?”

“I don't know,” Duc said slowly as he wiped his blade on a scraggly patch of nearby grass to clean it off, “but there's only one way to find out. We need to get back to the gate.”

As tired as they both were, Duc and Leo made their way back to the FBI's compound and then through the maze of hallways until they came across Dani, Mama, Barclay, and Agent Stern. Duc had never met the latter, but he'd heard tales of the man from those who had. Barclay seemed relieved to see the two of them, giving them a weary smile. His thigh had been bound up hastily with bandaging, and Duc could see blood already seeping through the white material.

“Hey. How's everything out there?”

“The rifts are closed and no more monsters coming through, though we won't know for sure until we head through there.” Duc gestured at the gate. “You up for coming with us?”

“Barclay? Who's this? And why is Mr. Tarkesian with him?”

“I'll explain later, but they're friends, Joe,” Barclay assured Stern, “and Duc is right. We need to get through the gate and make sure everything's okay on that side.”

“Right. Yeah, okay.”

Stern picked up a large baseball bat, readied himself, and then darted through the still-active gateway before anyone could stop him. Barclay sighed heavily.

“Damn it, Joe,” he muttered as he tried to get up. Mama shot him a stern look, glancing pointedly down at the wound on his thigh. Barclay sat down again with a sharp huff. “Go get after him before he hurts himself or someone else.”

Dani laughed. “You know he's going to be a handful to deal with in the future, right?”

Barclay flashed her a grin. “Yeah, but it'll be worth it. Go.”

Duc followed after Dani and Mama, Leo deciding to stay behind and help Barclay out as needed. Going through the gate brought back memories Duc would've rather stayed buried, but he reminded himself that he wasn't going on a suicidal mission of destruction this time, or so he hoped. The world on the other side of the gate was beautiful, even with the remnants of barricades here and there.

Stern was standing near a small crowd of people, some of whom were sprawled on the ground. Duc felt his heart leap when he spotted the easily recognizable fiery red of Aubrey's hair among those on the ground, and then doubly so when he saw Minerva's familiar form. He hurried over, returning his sword to its scabbard as he went so his hands were free. Duc reached her just as she was waking up and held out his hand to her, a tired but happy smile on his face.

“Welcome back, Minerva Knightley! How did-”

“We're out of time.”

Duc blinked as Minerva took his hand and got to her feet.

“We've got 128 seconds,” she continued on. Duc felt himself snap back into battle mode, the relief from earlier melting away like fog in the face of the sun.

“What do we do?”

“We've got to close the gate,” Minerva said. Duc looked over at the gate and then nodded.

“I'll... Fuck. I'll clear the way, I guess.”

He began running full pelt towards the gate, a full-throated Mira warrior's cry escaping him as he barreled across the lawn and down the main path back to the gate. It had been far too long since the cry had split the air of any planet, let alone a live one, but it certainly got the attention of the others. Duc could hear Minerva's feet pounding the ground behind him, along with several others'. He only stopped when they reached the gate, the skirt of his undertunic flaring around his legs as he turned to look at Minerva, who had skidded to a halt beside him.

“What did you see, Minerva? What did you see?”

“They're opening a fissure in the sky, and it's going to suck everyone out to space. It's bad. It's real fucking bad,” Minerva replied, panting.

There was a brief argument about how they were going to close the gate, and then Duc found himself huddled behind a column with Minerva, the two of them crowding close together in its meager shelter. She put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly.

“I'm with you to the end, Duc Nhuten.”

Duc smiled at her right before Aubrey pressed the button on the detonator for the C-4.

“I wouldn't have it any other way,”

  


Snatches of voices swirled around Duc, some of them in English and a majority in Mira. They rose and fell like the tide, and soon colors and smells joined their dance until Duc found himself standing in the midst of a Miralavian street market in full swing. The familiar heady scents of spices and roasting meat filled the air, as did the sounds of people haggling, children laughing, and the low thrum of chanting coming from a nearby temple.

Duc soaked it all in, loving the hustle and bustle of the market. It had always been one of his favorite places to come as a child, and time had not dulled that delight. He walked through the market, looking at the various stalls to see what their keepers had for sale or trade. The glint of light on a well-made dagger had him pausing briefly at one stall, but the delicious scent of roast meat at the next drew his attention even more.

He took his snack of skewered meat with him as he continued through the market, laughing as three children darted past him. Duc shook his head fondly, remembering when he was that young and carefree. Time didn't stop for anyone, sadly, and so he found himself coming up on his sixteenth birthday and the impending _Kir'desh_ ceremony that would tell his fate and award him his _glema_. It was all but expected that Duc would get the deep green fate marks that most if not all of the Nhuten clan bore, and he was excited to start work with his family.

“Duc! Duc, over here!”

Duc looked up from his snack and then smiled fondly. “ _De'nae_ Roshaul,” he said, throwing the now-empty skewer in a nearby trash receptacle before embracing the eldest of his sire's spouses. Roshaul hugged him back and then ruffled Duc's hair as they parted. Duc wrinkled his nose at it, making Roshaul laugh.

“You ready for your ceremony, little sapling?” Roshaul asked. Duc hummed.

“As ready as I can be, I guess,” he said. “I-”

He hesitated, frowning when he saw a shape floating nearby in the air. It was his sword, the one- He hissed quietly when the realization hit that what he was experiencing wasn't actually happening, but had _already_ happened. Duc looked at Roshaul but realized his parent was continuing to act as he had when the conversation had originally taken place, completely ignoring what Duc was actually doing. He closed his eyes to steady his emotions and then opened them again before taking hold of his sword.

As he took hold of it, the sword felt like it was stuck in something. The memory vanished around him, showing that Duc was encased in a sarcophagus of radiant warm light. A brief flash of bright red text scrolled across the surface of the light for a short moment before the blade pierced through the sarcophagus and forced it open. He fell out of the sarcophagus and onto a cold, metal floor.

Duc lay on the floor, his sword resting beside him. He closed his eyes, trying to rein in his emotions. Roshaul hadn't been his bearer- that was Owase- but Roshaul had been the bearer for Jaen, Duc's younger half-sister. Duc had been so excited to be an older brother, and when the leathery surface of Jaen's egg had been breached with the ceremonial knife and her cries had filled the air of the birthing nursery, that excitement had only deepened. Duc had had three parents- his sire, Feric, his bearer, Owase, and Roshaul, and missed all of them and Jaen fiercely.

Once he was sure he was able to control himself, Duc pushed himself up to his feet, sheathed his sword, and then examined the room he was in. Five other pods like the one he'd fallen out of were arranged around the room, and after they flashed briefly, Duc saw that they held some of his companions. The air smelled stale and unused, reminding him of some of the lesser traveled areas of Cordesh after the fire. Duc released the others from their confinement, catching them the best he could.

“Duc? What the hell happened? Where are we?” Minerva asked, blinking sluggishly at him.

“I honestly have no idea,” Duc admitted, “but I'm sure we'll find out soon enough. Maybe in that weird place full of light we've seen a few times earlier? I'm just guessing here, though.”

“It's as good as any other idea we might have,” Minerva said. “I suspect we'll find out soon enough.”

Just as she said that, some of the lights overhead flicked on, revealing a metal door out of the room. A bright red light came on over it and a clearly artificial voice made itself known, emanating from an unseen speaker.

“ **We have decided to ask you to please remain where you are. Your aggressive actions have resulted in significant damage to core stability. Our current situation is unprecedented. We ask you to patiently wait in this area until a decision can be made regarding your aforementioned aggressive actions.** ”

“Hey, uh, Duc, Minerva, Mama,Vincent, Thacker?” Aubrey said, looking at the door. “I would like to posit that, perhaps, we should not wait here for them to determine a course of action based on our, uh, aggressive, y'know, _stuff_. We should probably... y'know, get out, right?”

Duc winced when Vincent tried ramming the door with his head, and when that didn't work, Aubrey blasted the door outward with some her magic quite successfully.

“Hey, listen. Uh, we got a… a couple issues. I just tried to, y'know, brain scan, y'know, do the old mind-meld, and… there—there‘s some bad-ass shit out there. Uh, I didn‘t get any kind of read, but it‘s like this, uh… great big, uh… uh, beehive mind. So… I think we need to proceed with caution,” Thacker said from the back of the room. Duc only half paid attention to him, too focused on the distant sound of machinery coming from outside the door to really soak in his words.

“Mmhm,” he murmured. “Does anyone else hear that? Sounds like machinery.”

“Yeah, I think I did that,” Thacker replied sheepishly. “Sorry.”

“Maybe we should go, in that case?”Aubrey suggested.

“Good idea,” Minerva agreed.

The machinery around the room gave little clue as to what it used for, and Duc couldn't really make heads or tails of the tanks nor what they were currently doing. His attention was caught more by what looked to be a transport pod on tracks that led out of the room, so that was what he went to investigate. Everything seemed locked down when he got there, making him huff in frustration. Fine. They'd just have to figure another way around and-

“Holy fucking shit, that's my _brother_!”

Duc turned quickly to see Minerva staring at one of the tanks, Beacon held in her hand.

“What?”

“That's... that's my brother, Mercury, but...” Minerva shook her head like a dog coming out of water. “They're making a fake version of him! We've got to stop it, _now_.”

She swung Beacon at the tank, but the blade bounced off its thick walls. Aubrey tried to help her with magic, but it was Thacker who saved the day, his machete striking the now-damaged tank just so in order to smash the glass. As the tank shattered, the half-formed shape of Minerva's brother fell apart, the mist of materials that was still pumping into the tank swallowing it back up.

“Uh... Shall we continue our tour?” Aubrey joked weakly.

“Our tour of destruction?” Thacker shot back with a faint laugh.

Before the others could join Duc at the monorail station, one of the four-armed light beings emerged from the tank, all four hands held up in a classic non-threatening gesture.

“If you're with _them_ , you'd better start talkin' fast,” Minerva growled at it. Duc rejoined her as the being went over to a terminal, his eyes narrowing while he watched it place its hands on one of the orb controllers.

“ **Do not be alarmed. I apologize for the rash selection of this form. It was decided it might put you all at ease. I can tell from your expression this was not correct,** ” the same computerized voice from before said.

“Yeah, no kidding. What's your problem?” Minerva asked.

“ **The facility in which you stand has been in operation for eons longer than you have been alive, and this is the first incident of its type we've ever experienced. We were trying to decide our next course of action. We ask you to stay in the room where we placed you until a decision has been made.** ”

“Uh, just to clarify, is there a course of action you might take that would involve us being dead, or injured, or incapacitated? Y'know, that might result in a bad kind of situation for us?” Aubrey asked.

The being hesitated and then manipulated the orb once again before speaking. “ **At this very moment, the deliberative operational mind is deciding whether or not to grant your worlds clemency, and cease pairing operations between them. If you seek to save your worlds and yourselves, you would do well to act peacefully during the remainder of your stay here.** ”

Duc frowned. “You mentioned a pairing operation? What does that mean, exactly?” A creeping suspicion began to grow in his mind at those words. The presences of the gates on his world and that of the Swarm, on Earth and Sylvain... The same creators had to make those and put them there and-

A wave of cold fury swept over him. Duc stepped away from Minerva and the others, not wanting to bring them to harm through his anger. He found his hand had wrapped around the familiar leather-wrapped hilt of his sword, his fingers clenching tightly in preparation to draw the blade.

“Duc? What are you-- Uh, okay, let's... let's just talk to it,” Minerva said, her eyes wide. “I know you're pissed off right now, like severely so, but hurting it isn't going to get us answers, especially the ones we need right now. So just... maybe take a breath and get some space until we can figure this out?”

Duc clenched his teeth before turning on the spot with a growl, striding across the room so he wasn't in range of the being or the others any longer. He sank down on the dusty floor and then curled up with his knees against his chest. He took off the glamour ring, shoving it into one of his belt pouches so it didn't get lost, and buried his hands in his hair. He didn't want to hide what he was any more, not when faced with the ultimate reason of why his people had been destroyed.

He didn't notice the four-armed being disappearing through the floor nor see the others reading a historical text log, his thoughts consumed with far too many questions that he didn't have an answer to. Duc wasn't sure when his anger became tinged with the sharp bite of grief that lodged deep in his chest, nor when the tears began to track their way down his cheeks. He brushed them away with the back of a hand, or at least attempted to, but they kept coming no matter what he did.

The sound of cautious footsteps nearby hardly registered in Duc's brain, and only Minerva's gentle voice cut through the fog surrounding his thoughts.

“Duc? You... Shit, of course you're not alright. Um... Can you tell me what's going through your head right now?”

“ _They took_ _ **everything**_ _from me,_ ” Duc replied in a low voice, barely realizing he'd responded in Mira instead of English. “ _They took my friends and my family and my_ _ **fate**_ _from me and all for what? For their experiments? They made me a_ _ **murderer**_ _when all I wanted to do was heal! All I wanted to do with my life was follow in my ancestors' footsteps and care for the trees and the animals and my people! They're the reason my_ _ **parents**_ _are gone, my_ _ **sister**_ _is gone. Two worlds wiped from existence because of them and gods know how many more, and now they're trying to do the same to Earth and Sylvain, and for what? What reasoning do they have for their actions?!_ ”

As he spoke, Duc's voice grew louder until he was nearly shouting, his eyes bright with anger and grief when he looked up at Minerva.

“Does anyone know what he's saying?” Aubrey asked in the background. Duc hid his face again when he heard Beacon inexorably translating his words, the grating voice taking no pity on him as it repeated what he'd said. Duc flinched at the touch of Minerva's hand on his shoulder but didn't pull away, caught between his anger and grief and not knowing what to do next. Minerva gently maneuvered him into a kneeling hug, wrapping her arms around him comfortingly. Duc clung to her, his fingers pressing tight against her back as he rode out the tidal wave of emotions rushing over him.

He only let go when he felt drained and wrung out, his forehead coming to rest on Minerva's shoulder.

“I'm sorry,” he said quietly in English. “I didn't mean to- I've wasted time here letting my anger get the better of me. I shouldn't have-”

“Stop, Duc,” Minerva admonished, the soft rebuke tempered by the way she ran her fingers through his hair to calm him. “Don't apologize. It wasn't all that long, and you clearly needed the release. Are you able to keep going?”

Duc took in a shuddering breath and then nodded. He wasn't sure if he had imagined the brush of lips against his hair as Minerva moved away, but now wasn't the time to delay, not any more. Duc slowly got to his feet, well aware of how messy he looked and not giving a fuck. Aubrey gave him a short, sharp grin.

“So, those assholes seem like pieces of shit,” she said, “and even if they let us, y'know, chill out or whatever, they're just gonna do this again, to like, other places. And they've done it at least to Duc's, which, Duc: fuck them, am I right?”

Duc returned her grin, even as drained and weary as he felt. “Oh, for _sure_ fuck them, Aubrey Little.”

  


The transport pod took them to the vast chamber they'd seen in several brief flashes before. Duc focused on the brilliant white dome in the center of the room, feeling like that was the most dangerous thing in the room. He was proved correct not a minute later when several dozen of the four-armed beings climbed out of the dome and made their way towards their group of errant travelers. The beings didn't seem to want to listen to anything they had to say, even when Minerva tried to talk sense into them.

She gave up eventually and then went on the offensive, Duc following after her with a predatory smile. The first few hits against the architects of his planet's downfall felt amazing, but that feeling quickly faded the longer the battle went on. They seemed endless, much like the beasts of the Quell had, and soon Duc found himself settling into the kind of battle trance he had in that fight, continually moving his sword and slicing through whatever parts of the beings he could reach.

At one point, he lost sight of Minerva. Worried, Duc looked around for her, only to find her slicing through the cables and pipes feeding into the various organic printers around the room, sending a spray of whatever the materials that had been feeding into them out into the air. As the cables were severed, the abominations that had been in the midst of being formed within the tanks collapsed in on themselves like the half-formed clone of Minerva's brother had, seeping out of the bottom of the tanks before disappearing.

Before anyone could do anything, Aubrey did something with her magic and a flash of light radiated out from her. The particulate matter that had come out of the pipes moved like a low fog across the floor before swirling around the room and then centering on Aubrey. She disappeared for a brief moment within a tall column of the crystalline gas, totally obscured from view. The column exploded outwards, revealing Aubrey and a man Duc had never seen before.

The man looked around and then smiled brightly when he saw Minerva. “Min! Pizza!”

Minerva laughed from her perch on a pipe overhead, the sound tinged with bright but delighted disbelief. “Hell yeah, Pizza! Think you can help us, Billy?”

Duc was _very_ confused but didn't interrupt, especially not when Billy ran over to the nearest active terminal and began to manipulate it, clearly knowing what he was doing. The giant fiery ape that Thacker and the others had been fighting, as well as all the four-armed beings, paused and then jerked, as if losing control of their bodies for a split second. Billy finished what he was doing, looked up at Minerva, and then grinned as he input one final command.

They all watched as the holographic map that had been swirling overhead of the universe slowly began to gravitate inwards, centering over the dome. The display began to shift, molding itself into a new shape that began to look humanoid the longer things went on. It was a man with long white hair that Duc didn't recognize, bearing a long, thin sword that plunged downward, driving it straight through the shimmering red shell that had been protecting the central dome and shattering the shield to pieces. The dome began to light up, the flashes coming from it seeming almost panicked, pulsing almost in time to the rhythm of the music that had started to play as the figure with the sword appeared.

“Hey, assholes in the dome, guess what?” Minerva called out from her high perch, drawing attention to herself. “I've got some bad news for y'all. The one good one of you is out here, and you've pissed me and my friends off for the last time. Say goodnight and goodbye!”

Duc followed her arcing path through the air, his eyes wide as he saw her plunge Beacon into the center of the dome, driving the talking sword deep into its unresistant surface before letting go and sliding down its side. She stumbled back as the four-armed beings and the ape fell unmoving to the ground. Duc put his sword away and hurried over to Minerva, helping her to her feet.

Above Beacon, holographic text appeared, glitching and flashing like mad. The computer generated voice from before rang out again, sounding as broken as the text.

“ **Query: Has Reconciliation surpassed the belligerence limit? 20.63% affirm.** ”

Beacon laughed wildly, causing the number to change dramatically.

“ **41.09% confirm** ,” the voice said. Duc blinked before beginning to laugh as well, a wild, improbably idea occurring to him. Somewhere in the stars, a seer and a swordsmith were celebrating a job well done.

“Oh my gods, Minerva... I get it now!”

“What?” Minerva asked, sounding baffled.

“Haven't you always wondered, Minerva? Why Beacon was ever made, why he was so angry?”

Minerva's eyes widened. “Oh my _God_.”

Duc nodded and then pointed at Beacon, who was laughing wildly now, his wrought iron mouth wide and showing off glistening metal teeth.

“That's the end of our destinies.”

Minerva cupped her hands around her mouth. “Sorry, assholes! Now he's your problem!”

Beacon jabbed downward one more time, piercing all the way into the dome. Above him, the counter registered a new tally, the voice dutifully calling out one last time.

“ **100% confirm.** ”

And with that, all the lights went out. The tunnels connecting the myriad of worlds vanished as well, leaving the chamber completely silent save for the distant howling of winds. It was all a blur after that for Duc, if he was honest with himself. He found a seat on a piece of rubble as the others hashed out what they wanted to do and how they were going to get back home.

Home. He didn't really know what that was any more. He couldn't go back to Miralaviniax Orbital Body Number Five, certainly. But... but he didn't feel like he had any roots any more. Duc drew out the glamour ring he'd stowed away in his belt pouch, turning it over and over in his fingers as he thought.

“Duc?”

Duc looked up at the sound of Minerva's voice, his fingers stilling in their repetitive motions. His former apprentice stood in front of him with an inquisitive expression.

“Hmm? Oh, hey, Minerva. Is it time to go?”

Minerva took a seat next to him, resting her forearms loosely on her thighs.

“Soon. Aubrey's talking to Dani through her magic or something, but we're going to be heading out after that. Will... Where will you go?”

Duc rolled the ring in his fingers one final time before slipping it onto his right ring finger where it belonged.

“Wherever you go, my _ernurav_. One destiny may have been fulfilled, but who's to say there's not another waiting for us back home?”

Minerva leaned in against him with a fond smile, their shoulders pressed firmly against one another.

“Home it is, then.”


	6. Breathe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments/reviews are much appreciated! This is a bit of a filler chapter, so it's shorter than most of the others, but I'm still quite happy with it.

The apartment was oddly quiet without Aubrey in it. Duc had grown used to the young woman's vibrant presence in the two months he'd known her, and it felt strange not to hear her rustling about or to see Doctor Harris Bonkers hopping around the place either. For the first week after everything with Locus Prime had been resolved, he and Minerva stayed at the apartment, simply resting and recuperating after the battle. Eventually, though, Minerva had to return to work, which meant Duc found himself at a loss as to what to do.

He hadn't really thought about what might happen after everything was said and done, especially since not sixty days prior he'd been on an entirely different planet halfway across the universe. Duc had no idea what to do with himself now that he didn't have to simply survive from day to day in the burned-out ruins of his homeworld. He took to wandering the town during the day, better learning its streets and seeing how its people were faring after everything that had happened.

The town was slowly but surely rebuilding, and as he walked its streets, Duc found himself lending a hand to anyone who would accept his help. Most of the townspeople knew him as Minerva's friend who had started living with her a few months back, but that was it. It was oddly freeing to only be known for the good he'd done and continued to do rather than the potential destruction he'd been fated to carry out.

He found Jake and a few of the Hornets helping a store owner patch up her store. Jake immediately dragged him over to meet the woman, who introduced herself as Elizabethany and declared that any friend of Jake's was welcome to help. Duc pitched in where he could, using his greater strength to help move shelving units and heavy bins to where they needed to go.

The shop was small but cozy, and Duc couldn't help but linger over the fine bundles of thick yarn that reminded him of ones he used to see in the markets back on his home planet. He left that day without purchasing any, but tucked the idea of coming back at a later date into the back of his mind. The next day, he went up to the Lodge to assist there, Leo taking him up before heading off to meet up with Indrid.

Barclay put Duc to work helping him patch up the outside of the Lodge, replacing siding and adding a fresh coat of paint where needed. Duc enjoyed the work. It was simple but necessary, and the fact that a hammer was functionally the same the universe over was comforting.

Later that afternoon, Duc was adding a new coat of paint around the door-frame of the back door of the Lodge. He paused when he spotted semi-familiar shapes carved into the pale wood of the siding at about elbow-height and easily visible. Duc ran his fingers over the carvings with a faint frown before turning to call out to Barclay.

“Hey, Barclay? Can you come here a moment?”

Barclay set down his hammer and joined Duc at the door. “What's up?”

Duc tapped his fingers against the carvings. “These carvings... They almost look like High Mira for 'sanctuary' and 'shield'. They're not quite right, though. This one is upside down and mirrored, and this one is missing a few strokes in some places.”

Barclay blinked. “Those are Common Sylvan for 'safety' and 'shelter',” he said. “I put them there and on the front doorway in case anyone wandered through the gate when no one was there. The Council used to shove people through the gate with little more than a map to the Lodge and the clothes on their backs. It was an easy way to let them know they'd found the right place.”

“Huh. Here, let me show you what those would look like in High Mira,” Duc said, setting down his paint roller in the tray and then crouching down to draw in a nearby patch of dirt. Barclay crouched next to him, watching as Duc sketched out the two glyphs in High Mira. Mama found them sitting next to one another a half hour later, their hands covered in dust and dirt as they compared differences and similarities between their two languages. They only realized she was there when she cleared her throat to announce her presence.

“You boys havin' fun playing in the dirt?” she asked, sounding highly amused.

“It's not exactly playing,” Duc replied quickly, dusting his hands off as he rose to his feet. “More like- like comparing notes on our languages. I saw the Sylvan glyphs on the door frame and-”

Mama held up a hand to stop the outpouring of words. “You're not in trouble,” she told him. “I came out to see if you two wanted somethin' to eat. It's almost lunch time.”

Barclay narrowed his eyes in suspicion as he got up as well. “Who's doing the cooking? Jake better not be messing around with my fryer again.”

“He's not,” Mama assured him. “I've got the fixings out for sandwiches; you'll just need to wash your hands before you start in on things.”

“That we can definitely manage,” Duc said with a smile as he brushed off the seat of his pants. The three of them went back into the Lodge after the paint buckets and rollers were properly secured, making their way to the kitchen. After a quick wash up in the sink, lunch was enjoyed, Duc happily eating his sandwich and listening to Mama and Barclay talk about the various renovations they had in mind for the Lodge.

The rest of the day passed in a blur of hard work and good companionship. Duc left the Sylvan markings where they'd been carved, a tribute to those that had come before and the important role the Lodge had served in keeping them and Kepler safe. Barclay took him back to town once the work was over for the day, dropping him off at the apartment complex after saying goodbye.

Duc let himself into the apartment with the spare key Minerva had given him after he'd first arrived, a yawn escaping him. The work he'd done that day had been worthwhile, and he didn't regret it, but it certainly left him tired and sore. Tora was perched on the back of the couch, preening her feathers. She looked up when Duc entered the apartment and croaked at him in the way that he knew meant she was happy to see him.

“ _Hey there, little one,_ ” he said in Mira as he took off his shoes and set them on the rubber mat Minerva had insisted on buying a few weeks prior. “ _Have a good day without me getting in your feathers?_ ”

Tora clacked her beak at him and then made a churring noise in the back of her throat before returning to her preening. Duc smiled to himself, brushing his fingers over her head as he passed on the way to his room. A few moments later and he'd ensconced himself in the bathroom, humming to himself as he got ready for his shower. The humming graduated to singing while he showered, the water acting as a pattering counterpoint to the rise and fall of the Mira lyrics.

Duc stepped out of the shower about twenty minutes after he'd entered it, feeling refreshed and relaxed. He dried himself off, wrapping the thick and fluffy ankle-length robe Minerva had got for him around himself after putting on his pajamas. While the black garment wasn't something he'd have picked for himself on a normal basis, Duc couldn't deny that it was soft and warm and felt amazing against his skin. Since he was in a safe place and Minerva hadn't told him that there would be any visitors, Duc felt comfortable with not putting his glamour ring on after getting out of the shower; instead, he put it on the silver necklace he kept for times like this and then put the necklace on, thereby keeping the ring safe and away from Tora's more thieving tendencies.

He settled in on the couch, picking up the book he was using to better hone his written English comprehension. Duc still had some issues with the more complex rules of the language, even if he spoke it fluently, but had learned the alphabet relatively quickly nonetheless thanks to the sheer amount of unbroken time he'd had to learn in the past two months, even with patrol duties. He was enjoying a book Leo had given him, _The Cricket in Times Square._ It may have originally been written for children, but Duc was enjoying it nonetheless.

He was aware that Leo had given him the book partially to help him with his reading skills but also out of a sense of nostalgia. Duc certainly didn't mind, and was happy that Leo had gotten a kick out of it. Aubrey had done her part in on-the-nose theming for her book recommendations, giving him a well-loved but still readable copy of _Bunnicula_ to enjoy. That sat on a bookshelf in Duc's room, along with several other books that his Chosen and other friends had given him during that two month span they'd had together.

By the time Minerva got home, Duc was deep into the adventures of Chester the cricket, Harry the cat, and Tucker the mouse, Tora perched attentively on his knee as he read slowly but surely aloud to her. She was a good audience, and whether or not she actually understood the story, she seemed to enjoy it when Duc read to her. Duc wondered if she’d been affected in any way by near-continually being in Aubrey’s presence like Doctor Harris Bonkers had been, but there hadn’t been much of a difference to her if she had been, so he hadn’t pressed about finding out.

Duc stopped reading to Tora when he heard the front door open, looking up from his book and sending a smile Minerva's way.

“Welcome home,” he said, marking his place with a scrap of paper before setting the book aside. “How was work?”

“It was good,” Minerva replied as she took off her coat and then set her keys on the small table near the door. “Tiring, but good. How was your day?”

“Well, Barclay and I got a lot of progress made on the Lodge,” Duc said, watching Minerva sort through her mail. “We also discovered that Common Sylvan and High Mira have some interesting echoes and reflections of one another.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Duc said. “We, uh, we may have gotten a little distracted talking about it, but we had a good time nonetheless. Barclay thinks the Lodge will be able to reopen within two weeks or so if we keep working on it.”

Minerva finished going through her mail and then took a seat next to Duc, stretching her arms across the back of the couch with a heavy sigh before leaning her head back as well.

“That's good to hear. It's gonna be weird without all the Sylphs there.”

Duc hummed in agreement. “Yeah, but a lot of them stayed on this side of the gate because they didn't want to go back to the place that had thrown them out in the first place. I can understand why they wouldn't want to.” He ran his fingers over Tora's back, gently playing with her feathers. “Barclay told me that for a while there towards the end, the Council was throwing pretty much any and everyone through the gate if given an excuse. Jake was only thirteen when he got sent through in an effort to 'preserve what was left of Sylvain's essence for those who truly needed it'. He wasn't the only one, either.”

Minerva scoffed. “That's fucked up.”

“I know. Jake says he likes Earth better.” Duc chuckled. “According to him, Sylvain doesn't have pizza or much in the way of mountains that are fit for snowboarding. I think he'd also miss his friends. I've seen the Hornets and him helping around town.”

“They're good people,” Minerva said. “I-”

She straightened up as her home phone began to ring, startled by the sudden noise. It was the work of a few seconds for her to cross the living room and hit the speakerphone button. Duc made to get up and go to his room to give her some privacy, but Minerva waved him off. He supposed that if the call was truly private, Minerva could always pick up the handset.

“Knightley residence, Minerva here. Who's this?”

There was a warm laugh from the caller before he said, “Always so serious, Min. Where's your sense of humor?”

A bright smile passed across Minerva's face, temporarily stealing a bit of Duc's breath away as always. “Mercury! What're you doin' calling me so late?”

“Late? It's barely six-thirty where you're at, and three-thirty here,” Mercury pointed out. “Anyways, Dad wanted to know if you'll be able to make it out this year for the Bash.”

Minerva groaned and leaned against the nearby wall. “I don't know. There's been a lot of stuff going on recently and-”

“Minerva, he's turning _sixty_ ,” Mercury said quietly.

“I know, Mer, I know.”

“Besides, it's been ages since you've been out here, not to mention had a vacation,” Mercury cajoled. “C'mon, Min-min. I bet I can get Mom to make those sharp cheddar cheese puffs you love so much.”

Minerva ran a hand over her face. “You're not the only one bugging me to take a vacation,” she said, her nose wrinkling in distaste. “I got an email from HR today sayin' I had to take two weeks of vacation within the next month or they'd pick the dates for me.”

“Two weeks?” Mercury whistled softly. “ _Damn_. You really haven't taken any time for yourself, have you?”

“Oh, shut up. Like you're any better.”

“Excuse you, I make _sure_ to take vacations. Devin would string me up if they thought I wasn't taking care of myself.”

“That's what you get for marrying a physical therapist,” Minerva retorted. Her gaze fell on Duc and then turned speculative. “Hm. I guess I could make a trip of it. Maybe drive out that way and then fly back from Portland. Think Mom would go nuts if I brought someone along?”

Mercury snorted softly. “She might just burst into tears. You have someone in mind?”

“A good friend,” Minerva said, shooting Duc a warm smile. “I think y'all will like him.”

“Yeah?” Duc could hear the gentle teasing lilt in Mercury's voice that seemed to be inborn to all siblings across the universe. “He's a 'good friend', huh? What's he do for a living?”

Minerva's eyes widened. She looked around the apartment before focusing on Tora. “Wildlife rehabilitation,” she said, the mild panic in her eyes easing a bit with the lie. “It's how we met, actually. A damn bear had managed to get itself into trouble over near Old Bend Cave. He was part of the team that helped get it somewhere safer for everyone involved.”

“That's pretty cool.”

Mercury seemed satisfied with the answer, as he let Minerva steer the conversation away from Duc and on to other topics. Minerva breathed out a sigh of relief when the call ended a few minutes later, pressing the 'end' button on the phone.

“So that was your brother, huh?” Duc asked. “He seemed nice.”

Minerva pushed away from the wall with a laugh. “He is. Sorry to promise to bring you along on a trip without asking you.”

Duc shrugged. “It's alright. Besides, it'd be nice to see more of Earth beyond the bounds of Kepler. Not that Kepler isn't nice, but Barclay was telling me about some of the places he traveled to before coming here, and some of them sound pretty interesting.”

“Yeah, they can be,” Minerva agreed. “Well, if we're going to do a road trip, might as well make a proper tour out of it and hit up some of the various tourist spots along the way. I think you'd like Yellowstone. Mount Rushmore's pretty cool too. We'll have to talk to Mama about gettin' you some sort of ID before we go if we're going to be flying back. Hmm. Maybe Stern would be able to help you with that as well.”

She grabbed a notepad and a pen from a side table before rejoining Duc on the couch, starting to make a list of potential destinations. Duc listened to her talk about the various places, relaxed and content to be at her side. He found himself slowly starting to doze off, and as his head came to rest against Minerva's shoulder, Duc couldn't help but think that there was nowhere else he'd rather be.


	7. Life is a Highway

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Road trip road trip road trip_

The preparations for the road trip took less time than Duc thought they would, even with the need to gain an appropriate form of ID for him. Stern had been very helpful in that regard, his department trying to save face with Mama and the other residents of the Lodge by assisting in getting them proper documentation. Duc now had an official West Virginia state ID, though Stern said the rest of the documents- a birth certificate and a social security number (whatever _those_ were) -would take longer to arrange. Duc wasn’t too worried about it. Stern seemed a trustworthy sort, even if his coworkers weren’t. Barclay seemed especially fond of him, and from what Duc had learned about Barclay since arriving on Earth, was that the Sylph had a good eye for who was worthy of trust and who wasn’t, for the most part. Duc still wasn’t sure about Indrid, but he doubted he’d ever be fully alright with the Seer.

With Minerva’s help, Duc made sure he had enough clothes packed to last the trip, including a new pair of nice jeans and a button-down shirt for her father’s birthday party. Sarah promised to look after Tora, the _ch’rac_ quite put out at not being allowed to come along. They left early on a Sunday morning, Mama driving them roughly an hour north up to Elkins so they could pick up their rental car. She had business up there anyways, so the trip wasn’t a complete waste on her part.

Minerva had warned him that the first leg of the trip wasn’t going to be all that scenic, as they would mainly be driving for ten hours before they got to St. Louis, where their first stop on their Grand Tour, as Minerva had dubbed it, was located. Duc didn’t mind, especially since he hadn’t been able to go all that far beyond the borders of Kepler. They stopped for lunch about halfway through the trip, finding a place in Louisville at which to eat. 

They arrived in St. Louis around six PM, Minerva managing to find a spot within easy walking distance of their destination. Duc was glad to stretch his legs after the long car ride, even with the breaks they'd taken at the occasional rest stop. St. Louis was beautiful, but it was also full of far more people than Kepler could ever boast. He kept close to Minerva, the press of people around him making him worry he may lose her.

“Oh, look, there it is!”

Duc followed Minerva's pointing finger to a beautifully lit and very tall archway that seemed to be covered in metal and spanned a distance farther than he'd seen an archway go before. His eyebrows rose sharply in surprise. 

“What is it?”

“That,” Minerva said as she linked their arms together (Duc was glad for the darkness of the evening that hid the color in his cheeks), “is the Gateway Arch. It's supposed to serve as a monument for the pioneers who helped settle the western half of the country. A lot of them stocked up in St. Louis before they left west.”

“It's pretty,” Duc hedged. “Is it just there for looks?”

Minerva grinned. 

“How are you with heights?”

It turned out Duc wasn't that great with heights; at least, not  _ that _ high. He'd leave the flying to Tora, he decided. He was aware that he'd have to deal with it in greater detail on the plane, but Minerva assured him he didn't have to look out the plane's window if he didn't want to do so. Besides, that was over two weeks away, give or take a few days, so Duc decided he wasn't going to worry about it until then.

They traveled most of the next day, only reaching their second stop too late in the evening to properly enjoy it. The alarm Minerva had set before they'd gone to sleep went off far too soon. Duc glared sleepily at the beeping device from underneath the blankets of his bed, Minerva floundering around for it from her own bed with one hand. She turned it off before sitting up, a giant yawn leaving her as she stretched her arms over her head. 

Duc turned over in an attempt to burrow back under his blankets, but was thwarted when Minerva turned on the lamp between their beds, flooding the room with light.

“C'mon, you, up you get,” Minerva chided, keeping her voice low out of deference to their fellow guests on the other side of the wall. “Sunrise is one of the best times to see things around here.”

Duc sat up with a groan, his hair a mess from the blankets. “Fine, fine.”

They were back on the road again before the sun had risen, checking out of the hotel before they left. Duc dozed on the way, only stirring when Minerva brought the car to a halt in the parking lot. He followed her out of the car and along the path, yawning mightily until a chill morning breeze blew against the back of his neck. Shivering, Duc hurried his pace, wanting to get to where they were going and then back in the car.

They rounded a corner and suddenly Mount Rushmore was before them, the morning sun gilding the mountainside and painting the skies with vibrant golds and pinks. Duc went to the nearest viewing point and stared up at the four faces carved expertly into the mountainside, taking it all in. Minerva stood next to him, hands stuffed into the pockets of her jacket.

“Who were they?” he asked, not turning his gaze away from the monument.

“Former presidents - leaders of this country,” Minerva explained. 

“I see. Were they amazing leaders, or did they do great deeds to earn their place on that mountain?” Minerva hesitated long enough for Duc to look at her. “What? Was I wrong?”

“No, not exactly,” Minerva said with a sigh. “They were... people. Complex people who did good things and bad things while they were leadin' the country, just like the ones that came before them and the ones after.”

Duc hummed softly. “A constant across worlds, it seems, much like a few other things I've noticed.” He turned away from the monument. “Why don't we continue on and then we can go get breakfast? I want to try that place that offered waffles bigger than my face that we saw on our way here.”

Minerva laughed, the sound bright and fond. 

“Yeah, yeah, alright. Let's go get you waffles.”

They left after enjoying a lazy breakfast, splitting the overlarge waffles in half. Duc used liberal amounts of a locally made spicy pepper jam he'd seen on the menu that technically went with another dish, but he didn't care. It was delicious and he thoroughly enjoyed himself. They sold the jam at the register, something that delighted Duc to no end. He used a small amount of the cash he'd earned helping around town to buy two jars, carefully stowing them away in his luggage for future use.

The drive to Yellowstone took about eight hours or so from Mount Rushmore. During that leg of their trip, Duc discovered Minerva's love for old country songs and bluegrass music, as well as her love for singing along to the radio as she drove. She had a pleasant voice that blended well with the music, low and a little rough but otherwise mostly on key. Duc kept quiet since he didn't know the songs, occasionally humming along to the repeated motifs in the backing tracks.

Minerva insisted that they experience Yellowstone in the full daylight with plenty of time to poke around and see the sights, so they checked into their hotel, got dinner, and then settled in for the night. Duc was glad that they didn't have to get up as early the next day as they had that morning. While he still got up earlier than most, he still enjoyed the newfound ability to simply laze about in bed and not have to worry about getting up before the birds did in order to survive.

The drive into Yellowstone itself the next day was beautiful, though Duc couldn't help but notice the odd markings and bare branches on some trees that were interspersed with younger growth. It seemed strangely familiar but he couldn't quite-

“Minerva?”

“Hm?”

“Was... was there a fire here?”

Minerva made an odd noise in the back of her throat. Duc glanced over in time to see her eyes widen in sudden realization. 

“Oh, fuck. Um, yeah, about... shit, thirty years ago? I was like... ten or eleven when it happened. It was one of the most widespread fires Yellowstone had seen. It's really bounced back, though, and it was probably one of the reasons why I joined the Forestry Service with an interest in fire control. Not that the Monongahela sees a lot of fires, but still.”

“Huh.” 

Duc stared out the window and watched the scenery go by, only tearing his gaze away when they got to a parking lot and the car came to a halt. Old Faithful was beautiful, and Duc found the painted pot pools to be astonishing. He'd never seen anything like them before, as his home planet (or at least, the area of it around Cordesh that he was most familiar with) hadn't been particularly all that geothermically active.

What he enjoyed the most was the abundance of wildlife they saw, particularly the larger ones like the elk and bison. There was a mild traffic jam as a small herd of bison decided to wander across the road as Duc and Minerva were leaving the park, but Duc didn't mind. He took pictures with the cheap digital camera Barclay had loaned him with a content smile, pleased with the shots he was able to get.

They stopped for the night in Twin Falls, Idaho, both of them more than ready for bed by the time they finally rolled in to the parking lot of the hotel where they had a room booked. Duc settled in after taking a shower, his hair bound back in a braid to keep it out of the way as he slept. His dreams that night were troubled, filled with half-formed images of fire, ash, and those long gone.

He woke from a particularly intense dream by way of rolling off his bed with the blankets tangled around his body, not entirely awake and unsure of what was going on as he landed with a thud on the floor. Minerva jerked awake at the noise, sitting upright and looking around the dim room in confusion before getting out of bed. Duc barely realized she'd come looking for him until he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“Duc? Are you oka- whoa!”

“ _Ai, ts'kai werath!_ ” Duc spat, falling back on Mira in his half- awake state as he jerked back from her and scrambled to the nearest corner, his blankets trailing after him like a cape. Minerva held up her hands to show she didn't mean him any harm.

“Duc, it's alright, it's just me. It's Minerva. You with me?”

It took a few repetitions of his name before Duc became fully aware, his eyes wide and his breathing heavy.

“Min- Minerva? What... Why I am on the floor?”

“You fell out of bed,” Minerva explained. “I tried helping you but you... you didn't exactly take kindly to that. Not sure what you said, but I think you might've sworn at me? Not in English, though, so I can truthfully say I take no offense since I have no clue what you said. What happened?”

Duc pulled his blankets tighter around his shoulders, looking away from her as shame heated his cheeks. “It's nothing,” he muttered. “Bad dreams, I guess. I'm sorry to have woken you up.”

Minerva reached out and placed a hand under his chin before gently turning his face towards her. “No need to apologize,” she said with an understanding smile. Her thumb brushed along his jawline before she let her hand drop, a small point of comfort that didn't go unnoticed. “Everyone gets bad dreams. I'm guessin' seeing the burned trees today didn't help?”

Duc fiddled with his blankets, running his fingers against the soft fabric. “Not really, no,” he admitted. “I wasn't expecting them.”

“I'm sorry I forgot to tell you. Sometimes it's easy to forget you wouldn't know things like that,” Minerva said. She held out a hand to him. “C'mon, let's get you back in bed.”

Duc took the hand but didn't get up. Instead, he pulled her close and hugged her, earning a surprised but ultimately pleased huff of laughter. Minerva returned the impromptu embrace, her free hand cupping the back of his head.

“Thank you,” Duc murmured into the quiet of the night, taking advantage of the brief intimacy the hug offered.

“For what?”

“For many things, but for being by my side without question. It's...” Duc rested his forehead against her shoulder. “It's been a blessing I didn't think I'd live to see. So... Thank you.”

Minerva hummed. “You're welcome. Now, let's get back to bed. As much as I like hugging you, this floor isn't gonna do my knees any favors any time soon.”

Duc laughed quietly before releasing Minerva, this time allowing her to help him to his feet. They returned to their separate beds, the slumber that followed unbroken by specters of the past.

They traveled from Twin Falls to Crater Lake, Oregon the next day, leaving around eight in the morning and arriving to the lake around five in the evening, as they'd stopped for lunch about halfway through the day. Duc listened closely as Minerva told him about the history of the area and how the lake had come to be, soaking in every word. He'd quickly learned that Minerva was a great storyteller and was very knowledgeable about a lot of things, especially when it came to her experiences with the Forestry Service.

They stopped at a picnic spot on the eastern side of the lake to watch the sunset, pressed shoulder-to-shoulder as the sun slowly sank below the horizon. Duc noticed Minerva was more tense than usual, so he nudged her gently to get her attention.

“Everything alright?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, yeah, I guess,” she said. “Just... just thinkin' about meeting up with my folks and family and all that. It's probably gonna go well, but there're going to be a lot of people there. I mean, it's _technically_ just for my dad's birthday, but he's got four siblings and they all bring their kids and their grandkids, so it's usually held at one of the parks because of how many people there are and it's just...”

She shook her head and then took a drink of water from a bottle before continuing on. “It's a lot, and I'm worried it'll be overwhelming for the both of us.”

“I see.” Duc contemplated that before speaking again. “I think that we'll be okay, and we can always leave if it gets to be too much. I'm sure your dad would understand.”

Minerva snorted. “I'm pretty sure he's going to be over the moon with me bein' there, not to mention bringing someone along,” she said. “He and Mom always worry about me being lonely and stuff. I've never really dated a lot- never really made that deep of a connection with someone for it to last more than a few months -and it's never been a huge priority. I've broken forty, though, and... I don't know if I want to settle down and go the whole nine yards, y'know? But I wouldn't say no to having someone to come home to that wasn't just a roommate.” She froze briefly before adding, “Not that I hate having you in the apartment, Duc! Hell, it's been great, it really has!”

Duc chuckled at that. “Don't worry, I'm not offended,” he assured her, shooting her an amused smile. “I know what you mean. There's a difference between a roommate and having a romantic companion.”

Minerva relaxed, a sheepish smile curving her lips. “Yeah.” 

She took another drink of water and looked out over the water, which was starting to reflect the rapidly darkening evening sky. Duc did the same, content in sharing a quiet moment of companionship.

The Pacific Ocean was beautiful, Duc decided. He could barely believe that what he was seeing was just a small portion of a much greater body of water. He breathed in the salt-tinged air, letting the lungful out slowly as he walked. 

The vibrant atmosphere of the beach-side street market they were at flowed easily around him and Minerva, the breeze coming off of the ocean ruffling the edges of tent stalls and clothes alike. Duc stuck close to Minerva, not wanting to lose her in the crowd. She stopped at a stall selling honey wine, immediately engaging the sellers in conversation about where they had sourced their honey, among other things. 

Duc stuck his hands in his pockets with a fond smile. Minerva could find conversation anywhere she went, something he’d learned about her during their trip. A warm feeling rose in his chest, settling pleasantly behind his breastbone as he watched her talk. He hummed quietly as the realization that he loved her with everything he had washed over him like a wave over the beach.

It wasn’t a grand realization or a thunderbolt to the heart, like all the romantic bards and playwrights had described falling in love as being, but rather the acceptance of what had been building in his heart and mind for the past twenty some-odd years. Sure, they’d started out as merely teacher and pupil, but with everything that had happened between then and the present, it had morphed on Duc’s part to a soul-deep respect and love. 

To him, the idea that he loved Minerva was as immutable a fact as the sun would rise each day or that the planet would continue spinning. It settled soft and sweet in the core of his being and took hold with an immovable weight. He could only hope that maybe one day Minerva would grant him the blessing of loving him the same way. Until then, he'd keep his love quiet and held close to his chest, acting as her friend and confidant, just as he had before his revelation.

Minerva returned to him once she'd purchased a bottle of the wine, tucking it into a reusable tote bag she'd brought along with her.

“A birthday gift?” Duc asked.

“Nah, I already got Dad a certificate to his favorite hobby shop in Portland,” Minerva replied. “He builds these little model airplanes from kits. It's really cool, actually. He even does his own painting on them. The wine's for Mom. She's always been a fan of honey wines and meads.”

Duc nodded. That made sense. “Back home, we used to celebrate all of our parents' birthdays on one day,” he said as they continued on through the market. “It differed from family to family, of course, but my parents' day was the sixth of Rushing Waters, right near the beginning of spring.”

“Oh, it's not for her birthday, but I couldn't pass it up,” Minerva said, “but that does sound like an interesting idea. How did they figure out when their joint birthday would be?”

“Well, it was actually kind of hard given that their birthing days were all spread out over the year. _De'nae_ Roshaul's was in the month of Deep Cold, _Ko'nae_ Owase's was in the month of Golden Sun, and _Ko'dir_ Feric's was in the month of New Growth. They chose a date that was a month past their marriage anniversary so it would be easy to remember,” Duc explained, his tone fond.

“I can see why they would,” Minerva said with a laugh. “What about you? When's your birthday?”

“The conversion isn't quite right, but it was the eighth of the month of Harvest Song,” Duc said, “which Mama figured roughly equated to the eighth of November here going by the seasons more than anything else. It's what's on my ID, anyways.”

“Eighth of November. Got it,” Minerva said. “We'll have to figure out something to do when it comes around again.”

“We've got a while, but I'd like that.” 

Minerva grinned brightly at him, and Duc swore her smile outshone the sun.

They visited the Tillamook Creamery the next day, opting to go on the short tour of the factory when it first opened at eight so they could get to Portland by noon, as the party was scheduled to start at one. Duc had quite a bit of on the tour. It was fascinating to him to see how things were made, especially given how differently they were done on Earth compared to Miralaviniax Orbital Body Number Five.

They left the Tillamook area and headed east to Portland, both of them enjoying the scenic route that went through the Tillamook State Forest for most of the way there. Duc loved seeing the wealth of life, both plant and animal, that thrived there. The mix of pines and deciduous trees reminded him of the area around Cordesh, and while it did bring a wave of bittersweet nostalgia with it, it also helped something in him heal to know that there were still places like it.

Duc found Portland to be an interesting mish-mash of architecture and cultures, even if they didn't get to really stop and experience it full-force. Minerva drove them to the correct park, stopping the car in the parking lot. She took a deep breath in before slowly releasing it.

“Hey, it'll be alright,” Duc assured her. “Remember, we can always leave if something bad happens. We're not trapped here, and there's no one waiting to fight us.” He reached over and squeezed her hand. “Besides, I want to meet your parents and your brother at the very least. I'll reserve judgment on everyone else.”

That got Minerva to laugh, something Duc doubted he'd ever tire of hearing. “Yeah, okay,” she said as she got unbuckled. “We'll do this together.”

“Just like old times,” Duc agreed. They left the car, gifts in hand, and started down the tree-shaded path side-by-side.


	8. We are Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long, y'all. My creativity has been pretty zapped with everything that's been going on in the world, but I hope about 6K of wordage will help ease things a bit for everyone.
> 
> Oh! There is a non-binary character here whose child uses the Mando'a (Mandalorian) gender-neutral term for parent ( _buir_ ) to refer to them. The Mandalorian language was written way back in 2005 for the video game _Republic Commando_ , so it's been around for quite some time. Here's a link to the original creator's website via the Wayback Machine for further reading: [ click me!](https://web.archive.org/web/20121229211626/http://karentraviss.com/page20/page26/index.html)

Duc shifted the bag he carried from one hand to the other as he followed Minerva along the park path. They'd been walking for a good ten minutes or so, and they'd yet to arrive at their destination. Minerva kept looking around for something, though Duc wasn't sure what, exactly. He nearly ran into her when she stopped dead in her tracks.

“Minerva? What's going on?”

Minerva gestured at a poster-board sign that had been carefully tacked up on a wooden post. Duc carefully read the short message printed there in bold marker and then grinned.

“ _Bruce's Birthday Bash,_ ” he said, noting the directing arrow underneath. “Sounds like we found the right place.”

“I'd say,” Minerva said as they headed down the correct path. They passed a few more signs pointing the way before they discovered the main gathering place for the birthday party. There were at least thirty people there of all ages, with kids running around the large clearing that the party was being held in. Duc could smell the scents of grilling meats and vegetables wafting their way, making his stomach rumble quietly. Minerva quickened her pace, eager to see her parents and the rest of her family.

Duc was a few steps behind her with a small smile, gentle amusement coloring his expression at her enthusiasm. It was nice to see someone so happy to be meeting their family. Duc ruthlessly pushed down the swell of grief that tried to rise up from the depths at the thought that he wouldn’t be seeing his family any time soon, preferring instead to focus on the joy that lay shortly ahead.

Minerva snuck up on a older man with salt-and-pepper hair that was cut close to his scalp, tapping him on the shoulder twice before taking a half-step back. The man turned at the tapping, confusion flickering across his face for a split-second before he realized who it was.

“Minerva! You made it!”

He swept her into a tight hug, one that Minerva gladly returned. Duc watched the reunion from a few feet away, content to let Minerva and her father have their time together. Minerva let her dad go only to be pulled into a hug by a woman Duc assumed was her mother. Both of Minerva's parents were tall, so it was easy to see where she got her height.

Minerva's mother ran a cupped hand over her daughter's closely-shorn head, a fond smile curving her mouth. “Still keeping your hair short, I see.”

“I like it that way, Mom,” Minerva said as she let her mother go. “Besides, it's easier for work.”

“I know, I know.” Minerva's mom glanced over her daughter's shoulder, her gaze landing on Duc. “And is this your friend?”

Minerva turned and gestured for Duc to join them. He did so, coming to a halt next to her.

“Duc, these are my parents, Bruce and Cassandra Knightley. Mom, Dad, this is Duc Nhuten.”

“Duck?”

“It's, uh, it's a nickname,” Duc told Bruce, going with the half-lie he and Minerva had agreed on during their trip. “It's a pleasure to meet you. Minerva's told me a lot about you both.”

“Hopefully it's all been good,” Cassandra said, “and please, call me Cass.” She held out her hand for Duc to shake. He shook her hand and then Bruce's, giving both a pleasant smile.

“How's your trip been?” Bruce asked as the four of them headed back towards the main area where several picnic tables had been colonized by food, drinks, and presents.

“It's been really good,” Minerva replied. “We stopped by this nice outdoor market yesterday near Tillamook. Picked up a few things there, including something for you, Mom.”

“I thought it was _my_ birthday,” Bruce joked while Duc handed the gift bag he'd been carrying over to Cass. “Why's your mom getting presents?”

“Because I couldn't pass it up.”

Minerva watched her mother open the gift bag, a look of delight passing across Cass's face when she saw the bottle of honey wine within.

“You spoil me,” she said, leaning in and kissing Minerva on the cheek. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

“No problem.”

She set the envelope containing her father's gift certificate on the present table, sliding it partially under a heavier present so it didn't get blown away.

“Where're Mer and Devin?” Minerva asked.

Cass looked around and then grinned. “There! They're over there by that big oak,” she said. “I think Leilani is around somewhere with the other kids.”

“Awesome. We'll be back later, I promise.”

Minerva grabbed Duc's hand and pulled him away from her parents with a quick goodbye. Duc followed gamely after her, only briefly managing to wave goodbye to Cass and Bruce before they were left behind. Minerva only let go of his hand when they reached the oak, underneath which Mercury and his spouse had spread out a comfortable blanket to lounge on.

Mercury took more after their mother in general build and face shape, though he and Minerva shared their father's warm brown eyes and dimpled smile. He got to his feet and immediately crossed the short distance between himself and his sister, hugging her with a bright smile.

“You made it!”

“You knew I was coming, Mer,” Minerva pointed out with a laugh as she hugged him back. “You were the one who convinced me.”

“Hey, something could've happened,” Mercury shot back, letting her go. “You never know.” He focused on Duc. “And who's this?”

“This is Duc.” Minerva stepped back so Duc and Mercury could shake hands. “And Duc, this is my brother Mercury; his spouse Devin is there on the blanket.”

Devin waved from their position on the blanket, the cast on their right leg limiting their mobility. Minerva arched a questioning eyebrow.

“What'd you manage to do _this_ time, Dev?”

“Look, this time it wasn't _entirely_ my fault,” Devin said. “I tripped over the damn cat on the stairs and fell wrong. The cat's fine. She's been cuddling with me nonstop ever since.”

Mercury settled onto the blanket next to his spouse, leaning in and kissing them on the cheek. “It's her way of apologizing, I'm sure.”

Minerva took a seat on the blanket, prompting Duc to sit down next to her after a momentary unsure pause. His and Minerva's knees bumped together companionably as the two of them got comfortable.

“Mom said Leilani's running around here somewhere?”

Mercury nodded. “Yeah, she's with some of the other kids. I think Shawna is keeping an eye on everyone right now. Dad's going to open presents later once everyone's had a chance to eat.”

“Good to know. How's Leilani doing?”

“As energetic and rambunctious as ever.” Mercury grinned. “Hopefully by the time we have to go, she'll be worn out and ready for a nap.”

They talked for a while about various things, Minerva wandering off at one point to get her and Duc some food from the grill area. Duc tracked her movement across the grass before turning back to see both Mercury and Devin watching him. He blinked a few times, caught off-guard.

“Uh... Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” Mercury said, leaning back on one hand. “It's just...” He tilted his head momentarily to one side. “Minerva doesn't usually bring people to family events. You're the first person she's brought to Dad's birthday party since college. She seems... happy with you around.”

Duc felt his cheeks warm slightly but paid them no mind. “She's one of my best friends. If she wasn't happy being around me, then I'd be worried.” He rubbed at the back of his neck. “She... She's been an anchor for me when things have been bad. If she'll let me do the same for her, then I will.”

Devin gave him a thoughtful look. “She doesn't know, does she?”

“What, that we're friends? I should hope so by now.”

“No, that you have feelings for her.”

Duc sputtered. “Wh- what? I don't- we're just- what makes you think that?”

“Dev, don't torture him. You prefer him, right? I'm going by what Minerva's told us,” Mercury checked. Duc latched on to the brief reprieve.

“Y-yeah, him,” he confirmed. “He/him, but I'm-- one of my friends told me about this... shit, what did Aubrey call it... --genderfluid, I think? I'm still kind of working on that one. Definitions are hard.”

Devin snorted softly. “That's a constant thing, trust me,” they said. “Anyways, back to the subject at hand. I asked about you and Minerva because you look at her the same way Mer and I look at one another, or that Bruce and Cass look at one another. She just hasn't seen it yet.”

“Please don't--” Duc's shoulders slumped. “Look, it's new and pretty fuckin' scary and no, she doesn't know, but I don't want to force it on her out of the blue. I'm not that kinda person and--”

Devin held up a calming hand. “Don't worry, we won't say a word,” they promised. “It's not our place to say anything anyways. That's between you and Minerva.”

“Thanks.”

Duc relaxed at that, and by the time Minerva returned with plates of finger foods for all of them to share, the three of them were talking about the various places Duc and Minerva had been on their road trip and comparing experiences.

“-- and there was this buffalo that decided it wanted to investigate the car,” Mercury was saying as Minerva sat down. “Minerva was fast asleep with her head against the window. I was reading a book while we waited for the herd to go by, and when I looked up to see if we could move, there was a buffalo snuffling at the window Minerva was sleeping against and fogging it up! Luckily, she didn't wake up until after we started moving, but there was a definite nose print left behind once the buffalo decided we weren't all that interesting.”

“Telling that old story again?” Minerva asked, setting the plates down on the blanket in the space between them. “I was _ten_.”

“Yeah, and I was almost seven,” Mercury shot back. “Doesn't make it any less funny.”

Minerva picked up a cheese puff and bit into it with a roll of her eyes. Duc copied her, letting out a pleased hum at the delicious taste.

“ 'S good, right?” Minerva said around her mouthful of food. She chewed and then swallowed before continuing on. “I don't know what Mom does, but she always makes amazing food, and these cheese puffs are no exception.”

“You're just a sucker for sharp cheddar,” Mercury teased. “I-”

“Daddy! Daddy, _Buir_ , look what I found!”

All four adults turned to watch as a four-year-old girl eagerly ran up to the blanket, an exhausted looking teenager hurrying after her. The girl took after Devin strongly with her straight black hair and golden brown skin, though Duc could see Mercury in her bright smile and general build.

“Leilani, don't run your cousin ragged,” Devin chided gently. “Now, what did you find, love?”

Leilani plopped herself down in her parent's lap and showed them a handful of multi-colored pebbles.

“Treasure!” she said happily. “See?”

“I do. They're very pretty,” Devin said with a fond smile. They nudged her. “Look who's here, 'Lani. Your Aunt Minerva came all the way from West Virginia to wish your Pop-Pop a happy birthday.”

Leilani shoved her pebbles into Devin's hand before carefully launching herself across the blanket, avoiding the plates in a few deft steps and wrapping her arms around Minerva's neck in an enthusiastic hug. Minerva caught hold of her with a laugh, rocking back a bit from the force of her niece's hug.

“Look at how big you've gotten!” Minerva said once the hug was over. “You're goin' to be taller than me soon!”

Mercury laughed. “Let's hope that's not for a few years, but I wouldn't put it past her.”

“Both you and Devin are pretty tall, so I think she has a fair chance,” Minerva said. “Now, Leilani, I want to introduce you to someone. Would you like to say hi to my friend?”

Leilani looked up at Minerva and then focused shyly on Duc. He smiled at her and then gave her a little wave.

“Hi there. It's nice to meet you, Leilani. My name is Duc.”

Leilani blinked. “Like the bird?”

“Sort of. It's spelled almost exactly the same, but without the 'k',” he told her. Leilani grinned.

“A duck goes 'quack'!” she informed him.

“Yeah, it does. Do you like animals?” Duc asked with a gently amused smile.

“Yeah!” Leilani nodded eagerly. “I like kitties and puppies and birds and fishes...”

Duc's smile grew. “I like animals too,” he said. “Actually... Minerva, do you have any pictures of Tora?”

Minerva scoffed even as she took out her phone. “Do I have any pictures of Tora? What kind of question is _that_? Of _course_ I have pictures of her.”

“Tora?” Devin asked curiously as Minerva scrolled through her pictures until she found the album she kept her pictures of Tora in.

“A crow I rescued a few years ago,” Duc replied. “She, uh, she couldn't be released back into the wild, so she stays with me. One of our friends is keeping an eye on her for me while we're gone.”

“Ooo... she's _pretty_ ,” Leilani said, her eyes wide as she looked at the photos. She giggled as she watched a short video Minerva had taken of Duc reading a book while Tora preened his hair and made quiet noises as she did so. Minerva was very careful not to have any photos of Duc on her phone that showed him without his glamour ring on, not wanting to even accidentally give away his secret.

“I'm pretty sure she thinks Duc is her baby,” Minerva stage-whispered, making Leilani giggle even more.

“That's silly!”

“It is, but it's also very sweet,” Minerva said, shooting Duc a quick smile before turning her attention back to Leilani. “She's very nice. Maybe one day you'll be able to meet her in person.”

“Really?” Leilani turned to look at her parents, eyes wide. “Can we go see her?”

“Maybe in a few months, 'Lani,” Devin said. “We haven't figured out what we're doing for the holidays yet, after all.”

Leilani grinned brightly at that and then went back to looking at pictures of Tora with Minerva. They kept doing that until Cass called for everyone to join her and Bruce at the far side of the clearing for presents. Bruce opened the various presents, Cass writing down who had given what gift as they were opened.

Once the gifts had been opened, Minerva introduced Duc to some of the other party goers. The two of them had just finished talking with one of Minerva's favorite cousins when Duc saw Minerva wince.

“Everything okay?” he murmured softly.

“Huh? Oh, uh, yeah, it's just-” Minerva began, but was cut off by a bright voice that immediately grated on Duc's ears, though he couldn't specifically say why.

“Minerva! Fancy seeing _you_ here!”

Minerva took in a deep breath and pasted on a polite smile before turning to look at the woman who had spoken. Duc turned as well, curious to see who had set his friend on edge so much. The newcomer had harshly dyed red hair that didn't suit her very well in Duc's opinion, and while her makeup was well-applied, it leaned more into the artificiality of her appearance than anything else.

“Ah. Candace. Of course I'd be here. It's my dad's birthday, after all. I just haven't been able to make it in person the past few times,” Minerva said politely. “How are you?”

“Oh, come on, call me Candi! Everyone else does!” Candi flashed bright white teeth. “And who's your handsome friend, huh?”

Minerva's polite smile became slightly fixed. “Oh, this is Duc. He's one of my friends from back home.”

“How'd you two meet? Can't be a lot of places to meet up in such a small town.”

“Through work, actually. He does animal rehabilitation,” Minerva said.

“Oh, are you still doing that park ranger stuff?” Candi asked dismissively. “You should think about finding a real job that's more than just walking trails and playing with trees, you know. I can't imagine that you've got a lot of room for getting further than where you're already at. Jake could see about getting you a position with the state, maybe, if you want to keep doing plant stuff.”

Duc bristled, annoyance and anger swelling in his chest at the slights against his friend. Minerva placed a calming hand on his arm.

“Ignore her,” she said, sending a scathing glare at her cousin-in-law. “She's not worth it.”

“No, but _you_ are.”

Duc focused his attention fully on Candi, his hazel eyes narrowed.

“Minerva is no more deserving of your scorn than anyone else here,” he said. “She is one of the most hard-working people I know, and belittling her chosen passion only makes you look like a fool. I have been very lucky to have known her for quite some time now, and never in that time has she given me cause to doubt her in any way. She's not perfect- she's entirely incapable of remembering to put the lid back on the peanut butter, for example, no matter how many times she's reminded -but she shouldn't have to be perfect.

“Belittling someone for your own enjoyment is cruel, and, quite honestly, a sign of weakness. I can only hope if you have children or others that you are influencing, that they will ignore that particular teaching of yours and instead look to their cousins or others as a source of what a good person looks and acts like.”

He took in a deep breath, flexed his hands from where they'd been threatening to clench into tight fists, and then stepped away from Minerva and Candi. “Excuse me. I can't-”

Duc walked swiftly in the opposite direction, eventually coming to rest beneath a large pine tree. He ran his fingers through his hair, trying to calm his emotions. It wasn't often that he got worked up about something like that, but hearing Minerva be disparaged like that got his blood boiling.

Duc closed his eyes and breathed in and out several times before leaning back against the rough bark of the tree behind him. It helped to ground him in the moment, and he barely cared that it was slightly sticky with sap. He stayed like that for a while, not moving even when he heard footsteps approaching from the general direction of the party. Duc braced himself for the disappointed telling off he expected to get from Minerva, so was surprised when he didn't hear Minerva's voice but rather Bruce's.

“Mind if I sit down?”

Duc opened his eyes and turned to briefly look up at the older man before returning to his quiet contemplation of his own stupidity.

“Go ahead. There's more than enough space.”

Bruce took a seat next to Duc, grunting quietly until he was comfortably settled.

“I'm sorry,” Duc said, his shoulders slumping. “I didn't mean to cause trouble on your birthday.”

Bruce snorted sharply. “Oh, please, you weren't the one lookin' for trouble,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Candace is always picking at others. She's never had to work a day in her life, and my nephew isn't all that interested in changing that up. He makes more than enough for the both of them to be comfortable with his job, and Candace enjoys the benefits of that, though a bit too much in my opinion.”

Duc sighed. “Still, it isn't exactly a good look to get into a fight when I'm a newcomer.”

“You sure that was a fight?”

Duc turned enough to shoot him a confused look. “What do you mean?”

Bruce arched an eyebrow at him. “You think I can't spot a fellow soldier a mile away? You hold yourself like a fighter-- except when you're next to Minerva. Then you relax damn near entirely. You may not be on the front lines any more, but you'll always carry that with you. Hell, it's been over twenty years since I left the military and I still carry that weight. I haven't heard of anyone who's been there who doesn't, and how you carry that weight makes all the difference.

“You... you're a protector. Your first instinct was to step in front of Minerva and defend her from attack, even if it was only a verbal one. You shouldn't have had to, but you did it anyways, and that's what makes all the difference. I'm not mad at you, son, far from it. I'm proud my baby girl has friends who love her enough to want to stand up for her without prompting.”

“She deserves it,” Duc said without hesitation.

“Agreed, but I think we're both pretty biased,” Bruce said, laughing a little at himself. “Doesn't make it any less true, though. Speaking of...” He tilted his head in the general direction of the party. “We should probably get back there. Candace and Jake left a little before I came over here, so you won't have to deal with her again.”

“Well, that's one good thing, I suppose.”

Duc got to his feet, brushed the pine needles off of himself, and then held out a hand to Bruce. Once they were both upright, they returned to the party. Most of the others had spread out again, the kids running around once more with their minders close at hand. Minerva was talking in quiet tones with Cass, her arms wrapped around her torso in a loose self-hug and her shoulders tense. The urge to hug her banished any lingering annoyance that the situation with Candi had left in Duc. He quickened his pace a bit before calling out.

“Minerva?”

Minerva turned, relief flashing across her face when she saw Duc and Bruce walking companionably along with one another.

“Duc! You're alright!”

“Of course I am,” Duc replied as he and Bruce drew near. “I didn't mean to worry you. I just... didn't want her to rile me up any more than she already had, and the quickest way for that to happen was for me to leave.”

Minerva shook her head. “She should've been the one to leave.”

“What's done is done, and hey, it let me and your dad have a nice talk, even if he was the one who did most of the talking,” Duc said, keeping his tone light. Minerva laughed and then pulled him into a hug, something Duc didn't mind in the slightest. He returned the embrace, politely ignoring how tight Minerva's grip on him was. He felt bad about worrying her so much, even with his apology.

“It's not the way I would've chosen for the two of you to bond, but it'll work, I guess,” Minerva said as she let him go. “Mom's invited us over to their house for a while since our flight isn't until later. You okay with that?”

“Perfectly fine,” Duc assured her. He turned to Cass. “Thank you for the invitation. Is there anything we can do to help clean up?”

“We won't be leaving for a little bit longer, but packing up here and there probably wouldn't hurt,” Cass decided. “That's very kind of you to offer.”

Minerva shot Duc a pleased smile and then started helping pack things up. The work was quickly done with four pairs of hands helping, especially when two of those sets had more than the usual amount of human strength available to them. Once everything had been put away, Duc and Minerva joined Cass and Bruce at one of the picnic tables to talk. Duc was happy to sit next to Minerva and occasionally contribute to the conversation, content to watch and listen as the three Knightleys caught up with one another even more.

As the day went on, more and more of the party's guests said their goodbyes and returned either to their hotels or homes. Devin, Mercury, and Leilani were among the last to leave. Leilani looked to be all but asleep as she and her parents cam up to say goodbye, but she was awake enough to request hugs from her relatives.

“Mr. Duc, can I have a hug?” she asked as her parents made to leave. Duc was startled but, after a glance to Devin and Mercury for their approval, he held out his arms for her. Leilani leaned in and hugged him, her arms closing loosely around his neck. Duc felt his heart clench as the feeling of her tiny body against his brought back memories of hugging Jaen when she was Leilani's size.

“It was wonderful to meet all of you,” he said as he let Leilani go back to her parents. “Minerva's lucky to have you as her family.”

“And she's lucky to have you as her friend,” Mercury said. “Mom, Dad, we'll see you soon. Minerva, Duc- have a good flight back home and let us know when you land, alright?”

“We will,” Minerva promised.

Once everyone was gone, Minerva and Duc followed Cass and Bruce to their house. It was near the outskirts of the city in a quiet and cozy neighborhood. The inside of the house was as warm and pleasant as its inhabitants, and Duc couldn't help but smile at the amount of books that were placed neatly on the various shelves and tables around the different rooms.

“Feel free to take a seat,” Bruce said. “Oh, and keep an eye out for Soup. He's around here somewhere, but he's still pretty skittish.”

“Soup?” Duc asked as he took a seat in the living room.

“We foster kittens and young cats from the local shelter,” Bruce explained. “It gives me something to do while Cass is off filling the minds of the next generation. Soup only joined us a few weeks ago, so don't be too surprised if you don't see him.”

“Alright.”

“Duc, I'll be right back,” Minerva told him. “Mom needs my help putting stuff away in the kitchen.”

“I can help too,” Duc offered, but Bruce waved him off.

“Three people's more than enough. You're a guest. Feel free to take a load off for now.”

He and Minerva headed into the kitchen, leaving Duc on his own. He looked around the living room, pausing when he saw a flicker of white and orange out of the corner of his eye. He slowly turned the upper half of his body towards it, not wanting to scare off whatever was there. A lanky orange and white cat cautiously made his way out from behind the shelter of a large broad-leafed potted plant in a corner of the room, nose and tail twitching curiously as he scented the air.

Duc stayed where he was, watching Soup pick his way across the living room, the cat's movements slow and measured until he was within scenting distance. Soup sniffed at Duc's shoe and then pant leg, sneezing gently before stepping back, crouching down, and then jumping up to land on Duc's lap.

“Oh, hello.”

Duc let Soup continue to smell him, offering his fingers for the cat's perusal. That earned him a gentle butt of the head from Soup and a hesitant purr. Duc began to lightly scratch Soup under the chin, something that prompted the cat to settle in on his lap with his hind paws tucked underneath him and the fore-paws stretched out in front of him on Duc's thigh. Duc chuckled softly, enjoying the gentle kneading motions that Soup made, as well as the deepening of his purr. Soup stayed sprawled out over Duc's lap until the others returned, and even then all he did was open his eyes to look up at the newcomers, his purring never faltering.

“Looks like you made a new friend!” Minerva said delightedly as she sat down on the couch next to Duc.

“He came up to me a few minutes ago,” Duc replied, not pausing in his petting. “He's very sweet. Whoever takes him home will be very lucky.”

“It's a pity we can't take him,” Minerva said, “but unfortunately we're not set up for a cat.”

“There's actually a bit of a waiting list for him,” Cass told them. “We're still doing the home checks and everything, and he doesn't do well with dogs, so he'll have to go somewhere without one. He's good with kids, though. He loves having Leilani around.”

“That's good.” Duc finished petting Soup, giving him one last good skritch under the chin before letting his hands drop. Soup yawned widely, pink tongue curling as he did so, and then laid his head on Duc's thighs, his eyes closing.

“I think you've been claimed until you need to get up,” Bruce said with a laugh.

“He really is good with animals,” Minerva said. “One of our friends, Aubrey, she has a giant Flemish rabbit that loves to snuggle with Duc on the couch. She moved out of town a month or so ago, but still, it was adorable nonetheless.”

“Do you have any pictures?” Cass asked.

“Hm. Let me see.”

Minerva looked through the pictures on her phone, eventually coming up with one where Aubrey, Duc, and Dani were sitting on the couch together, Doctor Harris Bonkers stretched out across all three of their laps as much as he could manage in order to get the maximum amount of petting he could. Minerva passed the phone over to her mother. Cass leaned in against Bruce as they looked at the picture.

“That certainly is a large rabbit,” Bruce said, eyebrows rising sharply. “I know you said giant rabbit, but I wasn't expecting _that_ big.”

“It took me by surprise the first time I saw him, don't worry,” Duc said. “He's very sweet, though. Far more than I would've expected.”

“He looks sweet,” Cass agreed. She handed the phone back to Minerva, who tucked it away in her jacket pocket. “When's your flight again?”

Minerva checked her watch. “In a few hours. We'll have to be leaving soon to get the car fueled up and dropped off before going through security and all that.”

“Well, it's been good having you here, Min,” Bruce said. “You should visit more often.” He shot Duc a grin. “Bring Duc back again and I can show him some of the good breweries around here.”

Minerva laughed. “Dad, I'm not going to be bringing him back just so the two of you can get tipsy together. You know you can always come out and visit me whenever you have the time, right? This whole thing goes both ways.” She smirked at him. “We could always go on one of those Bigfoot hunts.”

Duc nearly choked on his own spit at that. “Bigfoot hunts?” he asked pointedly.

Bruce groaned. “Please, everyone knows that Bigfoot doesn't exist. It's just a tourist trap.”

“Oh, here he goes,” Cass said with a sigh. “He won't stop until you have to leave.”

“It's true, though! No one ever gets any actual proof of Bigfoot existing, and if there is any 'proof', it's a blurry picture of someone in a gorilla costume or something,” Bruce said. Duc and Minerva exchanged looks, Duc biting his bottom lip before he couldn't hold back the laughter any more, which only set Minerva off. They leaned against one another as they laughed, the shaking of their bodies disturbing Soup from his nap.

The cat made grumpy noises before vacating Duc's lap in search of a quieter place. Bruce looked at the two of them and sighed, though his exasperation was mitigated heavily by the happy crinkling of his eyes as he watched his daughter enjoy herself so much.

“What's so funny?”

“One-- one of our friends back home, Barclay –he's a big guy. Think lumberjack sort of style with plaid and a good bit of scruff. It's--”

Minerva shook her head, her giggles overtaking her once more, so it was left up to Duc to finish the thought.

“He tends to get a lot of Bigfoot stuff because of the 'resemblance',” he continued on. “He's good about it, even if he does grumble a bit. To be fair, he _did_ get a boyfriend because of it, so he doesn't have much room to grumble any more.”

“What do you mean?”

“About a year ago, someone came to town looking for proof of Bigfoot,” Minerva said, wiping a few tears away from the corners of her eyes as she calmed some. “He didn't find anything, of course, but Jo liked Kepler- and Barclay -enough that he stuck around.”

“That's adorable,” Cass said. She nudged Bruce. “See? It's not _all_ bad.”

“Still think it's a tourist trap,” Bruce grumbled halfheartedly. The conversation continued on until it was time for Minerva and Duc to leave in order to get the rental car's gas tank filled before they dropped it off. Minerva got hugs from her parents, and, much to his pleased surprise, Duc was included in the hugs.

“Take care of one another, alright?” Cass said as she and Bruce stood in the doorway and watched Duc and Minerva get in the car.

“We will,” Minerva promised.

“Don't worry about that,” Duc agreed.

With their final goodbyes said, the two of them left for the airport, stopping at a gas station just outside to fill the tank of the car. Once the car was dropped off and all taken care of, they made their way into the airport, leaving their checked bags at the flight counter before heading to security. Duc's ID held up when the security agent looked it over, making the two of them breathe quiet sighs of relief. Neither had doubted Stern would pull through in that regard, but they hadn't really had time to test anything out.

They were early enough for their flight that they were able to find good seats at the gate. The gate area was a little crowded, but not enough to make Duc nervous. The plane, on the other hand, he wasn't as happy with, but at least he was sitting next to Minerva the whole time. Liftoff was... not his favorite thing in the world. He held on to Minerva's hand as they rose into the air, his stomach dropping unpleasantly.

Once the plane leveled out, though, he was better, and Duc found himself able to settle in with a book and distract himself from the clouds passing by outside. Over the course of the nonstop flight, Minerva fell asleep, her head coming to rest against Duc's shoulder. He doubted she would be happy about it when she woke up, but he wasn't going to begrudge her some rest. Only when the announcement came over the intercom that they would be landing and their journey by air ending did Duc rouse his companion.

Minerva grumbled sleepily, clearly not pleased with having to wake up, but straightened up with a yawn.

“Almost home?” she asked.

“Almost,” Duc confirmed with a smile. Minerva hummed happily and then stretched out her legs as much as she could manage.

“Good. I'm ready to sleep in my own bed, and I'm sure you're ready to do the same.”

“Yeah. The trip has been fun, but it'll be nice to be home.”

Minerva nodded and then settled in for the descent. Duc grabbed hold of her hand as they touched down and the plane slowed, glad for her presence. Mama was waiting for them at the Lewisburg airport, meeting them at the curbside pickup area once they'd retrieved their checked luggage.

“Have a good trip, you two?” she asked as they loaded their stuff in the truck's bed.

Duc and Minerva exchanged a smile.

“Yeah,” Duc said as he got into the backseat, “we really did.”


	9. All of My Days

Returning back to Kepler after a little over a week away was surprisingly comforting. The absent thought that he was happy to be coming home had Duc stiffening in his seat. He hadn't really thought of anywhere as _home_ for so long that it was a foreign idea in his mind. He shook his head and then refocused, watching the scenery go by.

Mama dropped them off at the apartment building, waving goodbye before heading off to the Lodge. The two of them were met at the apartment by a raucous greeting from Tora. The _ch'rac_ flew around the living room in jubilant circuits, ending her laps by landing on Duc's shoulder and chattering for a good five minutes non-stop at him while she preened his hair.

Minerva watched in fond amusement. “I think she's yelling at you for leaving her for so long,” she said, laughter bright and warm in her voice. Duc laughed as well, one hand busy stroking over Tora's feathers.

“What gave you that idea?” he asked, his tone desert dry before softening considerably with his next sentence. “We haven't been apart for so long ever since we found one another.”

Minerva set her bag down and went to investigate the kitchen, a surprised but ultimately pleased noise escaping her when she spotted a note Leo had left stuck to the fridge with a mallard-shaped clip magnet.

“Leo restocked the fridge for us,” she called out as Duc put his bag in his room, Tora swaying gently on his shoulder. “I'll have to thank him.”

“That was very kind of him,” Duc agreed, taking off his shoes and then joining her in the kitchen. “I thought he would've been gone by now with Indrid.”

Duc felt pleased that he'd managed to keep his tone level when talking about the former Court Seer. He didn't hate Indrid, but he doubted he'd ever be comfortable around him regardless of what form Indrid was in at the time.

“Mm, apparently we were the last stop before they headed out, right after they picked up Tora from Sarah,” Minerva informed him as she finished reading the note. “He's turned the store over to some of the Sylphs who've stayed here. Looks like Aeric and Corbin- the two werewolves -are going to run it now. They're keeping the name, though.”

“That's nice of them. I'm sure Leo will be glad that it's in good hands.”

“Ten to one he's labeled then as 'employees' so he doesn't have to worry about the tax stuff,” Minerva mused. “It's what I would do, anyways.”

Duc hummed in response, setting Tora down on the counter before starting to rummage through the cupboards. “Looks like he restocked the cupboards as well,” he said. “I guess he really wanted to make sure we had everything we needed before he left.”

“He's _such_ a mother hen.”

Duc could hear the smile in Minerva's voice even though he had his back to her. She wasn't wrong. Leo was very much a caretaker for all he claimed as friends, but perhaps even more so given his deeper connection to Duc, Minerva, and Sarah.

“Well,” Duc said as he pulled out a box of pasta from the pantry and then shut it behind him, “we'll just have to thank him for being such a good friend the next time we talk with him.”

They started making dinner, their comfortable silence broken only by the occasional noise from Tora.

  


Minerva returned to work a week after they got home, thereby fulfilling her HR-mandated vacation time. Duc waited for a few days before starting to do research for the project he wanted to start. Said project would probably take a while, but all good things took time to do right, and this? This was something he sure as hell didn't want to mess up.

The information he got at first was confusing. There were so many different ways to go about what he wanted, and a lot of them outright contradicted either themselves or other methods. It was frustrating beyond belief, and by the third day of research, Duc was ready to pull his hair out.

Deciding that a walk would help clear his mind, Duc left the apartment. It was a nice day, and Duc found himself enjoying the journey into town. His meandering feet brought him without much thought to _Hither and Yarn_ , the shop he'd helped Jake and the Hornets set to rights a while ago. Its proprietor was busy restocking a display of pre-cut fabric squares when Duc arrived, but turned to see who had entered her shop as the bright tones of the bell hanging over the door rang out.

“Ah, Duc, wasn't it?” she asked, shooting him a bright smile.

“And you're Elizabethany,” Duc said, returning the smile with one of his own. “How's everything been?”

“Not too bad. The shop's just about as good as new, and I've got in some new summer-weight fabrics that should sell for a pretty penny.” Elizabethany adjusted the set of her glasses on her nose as she regarded him with a sharp gaze. “You look a little lost, if you don't mind me saying.”

Duc's smile turned wry. “Is it that obvious?”

“Only to those used to helping others find their way.”

Elizabethany brushed her hands over the tidy apron she wore, shooing away bits of lint with the motion. “Now, let's see what I can do for you, if anything. What's got your thoughts all tangled up worse than cheap yarn?”

Duc sighed and then took a seat in a nearby chair. “So... Jake says you're from-” He glanced around quickly to double-check that they were the only ones in the store, and continued on when he was sure that they were. “-from Sylvain. Have you ever...”

He waved a hand in a loose circle. “Have you ever tried courting a human? And if you have, what worked the best? Because I've been trying to figure that out, and so far I've come up with nothing.”

“Why come to me?” Elizabethany asked. “I'm not really all that much of a romance person myself, though I love seeing other people in love, if that makes sense.”

“Mainly because all the people I know would ask right away who it was I want to court. You haven't.”

“I figure that's up to you,” Elizabethany said with a shrug. “I don't need to know who it is you love. It's not for me to judge.”

“Thanks. So... the courting?”

“That's all dependent on the people involved, I guess. You don't seem much like one for showy declarations of love,” Elizabethany said as she returned to her work. “Why don't you tell me about how dating or courting works from where you're from? That's probably a good place to start.”

Duc considered the question, sifting through what he remembered of Mira courting. He hadn't really paid much attention to anything beyond the basics, as he'd never expected to be able to seriously court anyone until after his _Kir'desh_ ceremony as was traditional, and given what had happened at his ceremony... Well, his chances for courting had gone down drastically, so he hadn't bothered even trying.

“There're a series of courting overtures,” he began, looking up at Elizabethany with his hands folded in his lap. “The first is usually a handmade gift given by the person initiating the courting. If the recipient accepts it, then the courting can continue. Gifts are exchanged throughout the courting, but there are three large ones that outweigh the others: the Primary, the Promise, and the Penultimate. The Promise gift is given six months after the Primary, usually on a special day like a holiday or a festival day. That one is handmade as well, but it's more... permanent than the Primary. Primary gifts can be food or a craft or something like that, but the Promise gift is meant to symbolize the devotion you have to the person you're courting.”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “My, uh... well, I guess the closest Earth equivalent would be father, gave my, uh, my mother a beautiful vase for the Primary gift and a weaving loom for the Promise gift, both of which he made himself.”

“And the Penultimate?” Elizabethany prompted.

“Usually a dwelling to prove that the courter could provide their intended a safe and stable home to raise any future children in, but I don't think I can really manage that. Besides, I-” Duc smiled lopsidedly. “Jumping that far ahead of myself seems foolish.”

“I think maybe doing a blend of your courting and Earth dating could work,” Elizabethany mused. “Most people date one another- uh, I suppose exclusively courting would be the best equivalent, though it's not always that way -for a while before they start talking about marriage. They go out and do things together like meals or entertainment or traveling. When they're ready, whoever-” She laughed warmly. “I suppose whoever manages it first proposes, usually with a ring made of precious metals and gems. And then it's up to the engaged couple how long they want to take until they get married. Most of the time that's about a year or so, but some just go to a courthouse and get married without all the fuss. And then there're places that still arrange marriages, but that's not usually the norm around here.”

Duc nodded. It seemed sensible enough, he supposed, and adapting to Earth standards was something he was slowly but surely getting used to. Romance and courting was just another thing to add to the list, it seemed. He got to his feet and then wandered over to the neatly organized bins of skeins of soft yarn that looked perfect for what he had in mind.

“I saw you eyeing that the last time you were in here,” Elizabethany said, pausing in what she was doing and coming over to him. “We've got several types, but if you want something that the person you're making your gift for can use every day, you might want to go with a chenille or acrylic. Merino can be pricey if you're going large, and it's got to be hand-washed. Acrylic and chenille don't. I've also got some interesting cotton yarn that can be machine washed if you want to take a look at it. I bought that on a whim just to see how it'd do in the shop.”

“I was thinking a blanket,” Duc said. “I'd weave it by hand. It's sort of a tradition in my family, though my father figured my mother would appreciate the loom more as a Promise than a blanket as a Primary.”

“Thoughtful of him. Why don't you look over what I've got here. They're all marked with materials, weight, and prices.” Elizabethany patted him on the arm. “And of course, you'll get the Pine Guard special, so don't go looking too much at the prices, alright?”

“Pine Guard special? But I'm not-” Duc began, his protests fading when he saw the stern look Elizabethany was giving him. “Yes, ma'am.”

Elizabethany's expression brightened. “Glad to know at least some of you have sense. I'll be over there if you need me.”

Duc watched her go, feeling more than a little steam-rollered, and then turned back to the yarn. Right. He could do this. He ran his fingers over the soft bundles, immediately discarding the thoughts of those that made his skin itch just by touching them. He liked the cotton one Elizabethany had told him about, and it came in so many colors, too...

A dusty indigo blue bundle caught his attention, and the moment he touched it, Duc knew he had to get it. It was extremely soft and he could immediately see Minerva cuddled up underneath it. Although... He smiled when he saw a muted teal-colored yarn of the same brand and material nearby. Yes, that would make a nice contrast, especially if he alternated the colors every so often.

He picked up several skeins of each and then went over to Elizabethany. “I think I've found what I want, but I have a few questions.”

“Go right ahead!”

“Alright, how many of these do you think I'll need?”

“That depends on how big you want to make it,” Elizabethany replied.

Duc blinked. “Uh... big enough to comfortably cover two people?”

“You're going to need several yards of this yarn if you want it to cover a queen-sized bed. I'd say it's better to go big and have extra yarn, so maybe ten yards each? Anything you don't use, you can either keep or I'll buy it back as remnants,” Elizabethany said, her hand running over the yarn Duc was holding. Her eyes fluttered rapidly, and Duc swore he could see a faint glint of orange in them before it vanished again. “I can order it in for you since we don't have that much in stock right now. I know of several places I can get a good discount on the bulk amount you need. Half the indigo and half the teal?”

“Yeah. I guess ten yards of each, then,” Duc said.

“And your other question?”

“Do you know of anywhere I can make this in private? I don't want anyone to know I'm doing this, not yet.”

“You can use my back room, so long as you don't mess my quilting things up,” Elizabethany said, letting her hand fall back to her side. “I can't wait to see everything when it's done- assuming I'm allowed to, anyways.”

“If this works out, I'd be more than happy to show you,” Duc told her.

Elizabethany smiled. “Then let's get you started.”

  


Work on the blanket was slow but steady once the yarn arrived. Duc knew he wanted to make it the traditional Mira way rather than any human way, even if he could find tutorials on how to do it if he looked hard enough. The only problem was that he hadn't thought through the issue of not having a loom to weave the blanket on. Mama, however, had a solution to that problem; after he'd sketched out what the loom should look like, she'd made Duc a loom and shuttle out of some spare wood, hardware, and pegs she had in her workshop.

Duc kept the loom and his project up at the Lodge, working on it during his lunch breaks and a bit once he was done with his work helping around the place. He'd thought about doing it at Elizabethany's shop, but there wasn't really enough space in the backroom for the loom. As the blanket took shape throughout the summer, Duc got to know the inhabitants of the Lodge even more. It was sweet to see Barclay and Joseph's first stumbling steps into their relationship, and the more relaxed atmosphere around the Lodge now that the Sylphs didn't have to worry about the Abominations or being chased out by the FBI was pleasant as well.

Duc found himself falling back on the teachings his bearer had imparted when he was young, singing songs and speaking his hopes and dreams aloud in Mira as he worked to capture them with each pass of the shuttle through the weave. He doubted it actually worked, but he wasn't going to throw out his _Ko'nae_ 's words just because of that. Besides, it was nice to say aloud what he didn't yet dare to say to Minerva.

He found himself wondering if his family would have liked Minerva, but only for the briefest of moments. Of _course_ they would've liked her. How could they _no_ t have loved someone who worked so hard to protect both the people and the world around her?

The blanket was finished just as the weather began to start to get more reliably cooler during the daytime. Duc gave it one last look-over before carefully folding it up and putting it in a wicker basket with a protective wrapping of muslin around the blanket that he got from Elizabethany. He secured the lid on with bits of twine Mama gave him and hauled the whole thing down to the apartment.

Minerva was still at work when he arrived, which suited Duc just fine. It would give him more time to prepare. He set the basket down in the living room and started tidying the apartment up, needing something to take his mind of the anticipation that was slowly building in his stomach as time passed. Tora watched him from her perch on the kitchen counter, head tilting this way and that as she tracked him around the apartment.

“ _Do you think she'll like it?_ ” he asked her in Mira as he swept the kitchen floor even though it didn't really need it. “ _I just... I don't want to mess this up, especially... Well, I suppose I could just stay at the Lodge if my feelings make her uncomfortable. She's so special to me, and I-_ ”

He paused, staring down at the floor with an unfocused gaze. “ _I_ _ **love**_ _her, Tora. She's my shining warrior and my anchor and my strength. She brings me so much joy that it frightens me sometimes. Who am I to be given such a gift, especially after everything I've been through, everything I've done? I- Hey!_ ”

Duc shot a glare at Tora- well, more accurately, her feathered chest given she was perched on his shoulder -and rubbed at his ear where she'd nipped it. It hadn't been hard enough to break the skin, but it had still _hurt_ regardless. “ _What was that for, you ridiculous bird?_ ”

Tora croaked and chattered at him, tweaking his ear once more before flying over to a wooden perch that had been set up for her in a corner. She began preening herself, and Duc swore he could _feel_ the waves of smugness radiating from her. He rolled his eyes and resumed sweeping, the gentle clicking of his ring against the hard handle of the broom reminding him that it'd been a while since he'd taken it off.

He'd become so used to just keeping it on almost 24/7 that it felt odd to have it off, especially when he didn't know if they'd be having guests over or not. It was doubtful, especially as Minerva would've called the landline and left a message on the machine to let him know if they were, but stranger things had happened. Duc bit his lip before setting the broom aside and taking the ring off. He slipped it onto the thin chain he wore around his neck, refastening the necklace before tucking the ring under his shirt.

The absence of the faint pressure of the glamour across his skin was oddly freeing, and Duc found himself moving in a half-dance as he finished sweeping. Once the kitchen was cleaned, he moved on to the living room, avoiding looking at the basket that held a good portion of his hopes and dreams within it.

He'd just finished making sure the DVDs were organized when he heard Minerva's key turn in the front door. Duc straightened up and dusted his hands off as she entered the apartment. Minerva smiled brightly at him when she saw him.

“Hey, Duc! What're you up to?”

“Nothing much,” Duc replied with a shrug. “Just doing a bit of cleaning up. Have a good day at work?”

“I did,” Minerva confirmed, taking off her coat and hanging it up on one of the pegs of the coat rack near the door. “What about you?”

“Mm, worked on getting the Lodge ready for the winter,” Duc said. “Barclay says the tourists should be coming around soon to see the leaves change. I was a little confused by that, but then again, the leaves don't- didn't-” He huffed softly. “Anyways. It'll be interesting to see that.”

“Yeah, you arrived late spring, so everything was pretty much in full bloom,” Minerva said. “Trust me, it's goin' to be one of the most beautiful things you've seen.”

The thought that Minerva was already one of the, if not _the_ , most beautiful things in the whole universe that he'd seen passed through Duc's mind, but he managed to keep it to himself for the time being.

“I'm sure it will be,” he agreed. “Did you already grab dinner?”

“Not yet. What would you say to a pizza? I'm too tired to cook anything right now.”

Duc shrugged. “Sure, why not? Half pepperoni, half sausage and onion?”

“Perfect.”

Minerva called in the order, Duc making sure she was looking in a different direction before he quickly moved the basket to a less obvious spot. He'd give it to her after their meal. Yeah, that sounded like a good idea.

  


Almost an hour later and Duc was starting to regret having waited. The nervousness he'd felt all day had slowly but surely started to ramp up over dinner, and as a result the pizza sat uneasily in his stomach. Minerva had put a movie on in her continued campaign to instill some more knowledge of Earth pop culture into Duc's brain, and while he'd enjoyed the antics of the two brightly colored fish traveling the oceans in search of a younger fish, he hadn't really absorbed everything in the way he usually did.

Minerva seemed to have picked up on his uneasiness, as once the end credits began to roll, she turned off the electronics and focused her attention on him.

“You okay? You've been pretty quiet tonight.”

Duc gave her a halfhearted smile. “I'm fine. Just more tired than I realized.”

Minerva arched an eyebrow at him, clearly not believing a word he said. “You sure?”

“I'm sure. I-”

Duc was cut off by a loud squawk from Tora that had both him and Minerva turning to see what was going on with her. Duc went still when he saw that the _ch'rac_ was perched on top of the wicker basket near the window. Oh, that little-

“Huh. Is that yours?”

“Tora?”

Minerva rolled her eyes as she got to her feet. “No, not Tora. The basket she's on. That wasn't here this morning.”

Duc followed her movements, cursing up a storm in his head when he saw Tora lightly tugging at the twine holding the lid on the basket. “Uh, yeah, it's-” He rubbed at the back of his neck, fingers catching on his hair before he let his hand fall to his lap. “It's actually for you. Bring it... bring it over and I can tell you about it.”

Minerva gamely grabbed hold of the hip-high basket, Tora hopping off onto the nearby windowsill with a low churring noise. Once Minerva was sitting on the couch again, she placed the basket on the floor between them and looked at Duc expectantly.

“So, this is-” Duc ran his fingers through his hair- he'd let it hang loose after being in a braid for the whole day -pushing it back from his face a few times as he struggled to gather the right words in English. “Let me say it in Mira first, okay? I promise I'll repeat it in English, but I can't-”

“Whoa, Duc, take a breath, alright?” Minerva urged, reaching out and taking hold of his hands to still them. “Focus on me and follow my breathing.”

She pointedly breathed in and out in a slow pattern, only relaxing when Duc followed her lead. She smiled encouragingly at him once he seemed calmer. “Okay, say what you need to say. It must be a pretty important basket, huh?”

“More like what's in it,” Duc muttered. He kept hold of her hands, focusing on the differences in their shapes and colors. When he spoke next, it was in the more melodic variant of Mira that had been more commonly used by the poets and bards of his homeworld, the ritual words to start a Courting helping to soothe some of the wild beating of his heart.

“ _I present to you this gift for your consideration. I hope that I have found as much favor in your heart as you have in mine. It is a symbol of the hope for new beginnings and dreams, of love and joy. Know that should you refuse this gift, your choice will be honored and I will speak no more of my intentions toward you. They will be released as chaff on the wind, and if I dishonor this promise, then may the gods take retribution on your behalf, as is their right. I await your response, my shining warrior, and can only hope that we will find joy in it together._ ”

He'd added his own flair for the last line, but thankfully the First Words were relatively flexible in that regard, so he didn't really feel too bad about the minor edit. Duc looked up at Minerva, who was watching him with a patient and faintly puzzled look.

“I caught maybe... like one in ten words?” she said, and then brightened. “I did recognize _ernurav,_ though. You _still_ haven't taught me what that one means yet.”

Duc felt his cheeks warm. “It, uh, it means 'shining warrior'.” He took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. Right. He could do this. “There was a... tradition on Miralaviniax that I never thought I would get to take part in, back when it was still... still thriving. I- uh, after my _Kir'desh_ ceremony, I figured it'd be out of the picture entirely given what'd happened.”

“And now?” Minerva prompted gently.

“And now, it's just me, and no one would really judge me if I did things the Earth way, but I wanted to honor my people and figured you'd probably enjoy it as well and-”

Duc closed his eyes with a frustrated huff. Gods, the words he wanted just weren't coming to him. “Open... open the basket. What's inside is for you. I, uh, I made it myself, as is- _was_ -tradition.”

He opened his eyes to find Minerva still watching him closely, concern furrowing her brow. Duc wanted to do nothing more than to lean in and kiss away that concern, but he knew he had to do this right. “Consider the gift as... as a starting point. There's so much I want to share with you, and this is the only way I know how.”

Minerva squeezed his hands gently and then let go. She turned her attention to the basket, carefully undoing the twine keeping the lid on before setting the cover aside. Duc watched her reach in, his fingers curled sharply against his thighs. The soft flutter of wings barely registered in his mind, nor did the presence of Tora perching close by on the back of the couch.

Minerva drew the blanket out of the basket, her eyes wide as she unwrapped the muslin from around it. The colors had blended nicely together, all in all. Duc was quietly pleased at how neat and straight he'd managed to get the subtle stripes on the blanket to be. Minerva ran a hand over the soft woven fabric, and Duc ached to see the carefully neutral expression she wore.

He regretted eating the pizza, or really anything that day. It all felt like it was churning around in his stomach, threatening to make a return trip back up and-

“This is _beautiful_ ,” Minerva breathed, cutting through the whirlwind of Duc's thoughts. “You made this?”

Duc nodded, a bit of his normal color returning to his face. “Y-yeah. _Ko'nae_ Owase was a weaver, and he taught me how to use a loom. It's been a while since I've used one, but I think it turned out alright.”

“Duc, this is _gorgeous_ ,” Minerva told him, her fingers sweeping over the fabric in gentle repeated motions. “This had to have taken you a while.”

“A few months.” Duc shrugged. It certainly wasn't as long as some Primary gifts took their makers, but it also wasn't up to the speed he'd once been able to manage when he was younger. “But... yeah. It's for you. I... The tradition I was talking about earlier? This-”

He reached out and brushed his fingers against the blanket. “Making a gift for someone is the start of the courting process on Miralaviniax. I... you've been part of my heart for so long, Minerva, and I can't see that ever changing. You've kept me going through some of the roughest times I've ever experienced and accepted me in a way few others have. If you want to just- just remain friends, I will gladly accept your decision. If you'd prefer I not live here any more, then I'm sure I can find a room at the Lodge. But... I'd like to continue walking life's path with you, Minerva Knightley, both side by side and hand in hand. If you'll have me, that is.”

Duc withdrew his hand and sat back, folding his hands in his lap in an effort to keep from running them through his hair again. Waiting for Minerva's answer seemed to stretch on like a lazy day in summer, time melting and shifting into unceasing nothingness. When she did speak, it felt like every atom of Duc's body fell still. He barely dared to breathe in case he missed a single syllable.

“Duc, I-”

Minerva laughed, and Duc was instantly alert when he heard the wet edge to it. She was crying? Shit, she was _crying_!

“You say such beautiful things sometimes and I don't know what to do with them,” she continued on, wiping away a trailing tear from her cheek. “You... you've been one of my best friends for so long, even when we didn't really talk all that much. I never thought I'd get to meet you in person, y'know? I figured you'd just be a green ghost that would pop up occasionally and train me to use a sword. But now you're here and you're _real_ and you've got shitty opinions about sci-fi movies and-”

She shook her head, laughing again. “And I've been falling in love with you for so fuckin' long that I didn't even realize it. It was less like a hammer over the head and more like, I don't know, a lazy trip down a slow water-slide. You snuck in to my heart when I was nineteen and never left, you asshole.”

Duc felt his heart and breathing slowly catch up to what his ears and brain were hearing. She loved him.

_She_ _ **loved**_ _him_.

He reached out and carefully ran the pad of his thumb over her cheek, following the delicate lines of the bone hidden there as he wiped away the tears that were falling.

“Looks like we're both a pair of idiots who can't see what's happening right in front of them, huh?” he asked, an intense feeling of warmth and joy roaring to life in his heart, mind, and soul as he smiled at her. Minerva nodded, leaning into his touch with a smile of her own.

“Yeah, looks like.”

Duc leaned in and gently pressed their foreheads together, his eyes fluttering shut as he simply reveled in the fact that his love was returned as equally and fiercely as he gave it. Minerva took hold of his hands, adding another point of connection as the two of them sat there together and just breathed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I make no apologies for the fibercraft sins I've committed, if any, in the making of this chapter. Also, this is close to what I was visualizing for the blanket (the green/blue one) : https://www.woollyllamawholesale.com/product/alpaca-blankets-throws-wide-stripes/


	10. Begin Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this is it, the last chapter of _Things We Lost in the Fire_. Thanks for coming along with me on this ride, and many thanks to the Ducknerva server for cheering me on, inspiring me, and being there when I needed it the most. Y'all rock. I'll be back with a new story soon, I'm sure!
> 
> Yours,
> 
> Gryph

Much to Duc's utter delight and surprise, being able to voice his love for Minerva out loud and have it reciprocated both didn't seem to change much in their day-to-day lives, and yet also changed everything for the better. Minerva had always been one for casual physical contact, but now there was the added benefit of lazy cuddling, spontaneous kissing, and, after a while, the sharing of a bed at night. Duc had been worried about the nightmares he still got on occasion- something he doubted would ever go away, even so far removed from the trauma that had first caused them -but Minerva had yet to ask him to return to the second bedroom because of them, something he was very grateful for.

Minerva had been correct in her assertion that Duc would like the autumn and the leaves changing and falling. It was strange to see the trees with bare branches but no obvious signs of damage, but he did find a simple joy in walking across the fallen leaves and hear them crunch underfoot. It was a bit of childish delight he hadn't expected to regain.

The various holidays and celebrations during the fall and leading into winter intrigued him. Halloween seemed to be mainly for kids, though the adults had their fun with decorating the town in the spookiest or cheesiest ways possible. Duc was surprised to see quite a few children dressed up as various monsters, some that even resembled Abominations and Sylphs alike.

“I would've thought their parents wouldn't want any reminders about what had happened,” he said to Minerva after seeing a group of kids off once they'd been give their sugary bounty. 

Minerva shrugged. “Humans have weird ways of coping with things. Besides, most of what these kids are wearing are from movies or TV shows, so they're removed enough from what happened that it's not gonna set people off.”

That seemed sensible enough, Duc supposed, and it didn't seem like it was hurting anyone, so he let it be. If nothing else, it was wonderful to see the children laughing and enjoying themselves. 

Roughly a week or so after Halloween, Minerva surprised Duc by taking him to a corn maze that was about two hours away from Kepler. As it was toward the end of the season, not as many people were there, but the two of them still enjoyed themselves greatly, getting an early dinner at a restaurant nearby before heading back home. Duc was quite pleased with the soft and warm sweater Minerva got him, and was touched by the hand-made perch Mama and Barclay gave him for Tora to use.

The dinner they had for Thanksgiving up at the Lodge at the end of the month reminded Duc of the harvest celebrations back on Miralaviniax Orbital Body 5. It was full of plenty of warmth, good food, and the companionship of amazing friends. There were far too many leftovers, but those were easily divided up and sent out with the attendees of the dinner.

After Thanksgiving, the inhabitants of Kepler started decorating for the winter holidays, putting up colorful lights and decorations, racing against the threat of snow to get everything in place. Duc helped where he could, climbing up ladders, working on roofs, and generally making sure things were securely set up as needed. He liked the twinkling lights, especially against the snow. He and Minerva took to going on walks in the early evenings just after dusk, simply enjoying seeing the beautiful displays and spending time together.

A few days before Christmas, Mercury, Devin, and Leilani flew in to Lewisburg, Minerva picking them up at the airport while Duc finished getting things ready at the apartment. The guest bedroom had already been set up for the small family to share, with an air mattress ready and waiting to be inflated for Leilani to use come bedtime. Duc and Minerva had made sure to decorate the apartment, though it'd been tough with Tora eyeing all the shiny baubles and ornaments hanging from the small tree in the corner. 

Duc shooed Tora away from the tree for the umpteenth time as the moment of their guests' arrival drew closer, eventually locking her in the bathroom for the time being. He'd let her out soon enough, as he didn't want her either hurting herself or getting in trouble with what she could find in the bathroom, but he also wanted the tree to survive for the time being. The gifts they'd gotten for their guests were already neatly wrapped and waiting under the tree, Minerva's tidy handwriting clearly marking which gift was for which person.

Duc had two gifts he wanted to give Minerva. The one under the tree was a collection of audiobooks he knew she didn't have yet, but the one he was most anxious to give her would have to wait until their guests had returned home. He was planning on giving it to her on New Year's Eve, as they had already decided to just stay home for that and avoid any large crowds, and he hoped like hell she would like it.

The jingle of keys and voices in the hall outside the door caught Duc's attention. He double-checked to see that he was still wearing his glamour ring on his hand (he was, he noted with a flash of relief), and went to put away the cleaning products he'd been using while Minerva let herself and their guests in.

“Duc? Honey, we're here! Would you come help with the luggage?”

“ _Honey_?”

Duc closed the folding door of the closet where the washer and dryer lived after putting the cleaner bottle on the shelf and then stepped out of the short hallway leading to the bedrooms. 

“You didn't tell them?” he asked, shooting Minerva an amused look. Minerva rolled her eyes.

“Look, the airport was worse than Tarkesian's the week before Thanksgiving,” she said, “and traffic comin' back wasn't much better.”

“You still could've told us!” Mercury protested from behind her. “There was time! Do Mom and Dad know?”

Duc laughed as he helped get the luggage inside and into the guest bedroom, leaving the two siblings to gently bicker at one another while Devin and Leilani went further into the apartment. Duc noticed Leilani looking around for something, a tiny pout marring her expression when she didn't see it.

“Everything alright?”

“There's no bird, Mr. Duc! You said you had a bird! Does she live somewhere else?”

Duc blinked a few times and then laughed. “No, no, she's here. She's just in the restroom so she couldn't keep trying to steal all the ornaments off the tree.”

That earned a giggle from Leilani, her pout entirely gone. Duc knelt down in front of her, making sure he was out of the way of the others before he started talking.

“Now, two things. One, you can just call me Duc, alright? No 'Mr.' needed, I promise. And two, why don't you go sit down on the couch and we'll see if Tora's going to let me introduce her to you. She can get cranky if I tell her no about certain things. But you have to ask your parents first.”

Leilani immediately looked up at Devin, eyes wide and pleading. Devin pretended to ponder over it for a long moment, long enough to have the little girl all but dancing from foot to foot, and then nodded their permission. Leilani cheered, gave Duc a fleeting hug, and then hurried over to the couch, clambering up onto it and making herself at home on the center cushion.

Duc rose to his feet, amusement crinkling the corners of his eyes. “Someone's excited.”

Devin laughed. “She's been talking almost non-stop about seeing your bird,” they said. “She's been excited about it since the picnic. I think she's discovered a new special interest.”

“Good for her. Birds are pretty cool animals.”

Duc retrieved Tora from the bathroom, murmuring several apologies in Mira before they left the small room. The _ch'rac_ hadn't made too much of a mess, contenting herself with pushing the toothpaste off the counter and then pecking and biting a bit at the shiny metal of the faucet and sink knobs. Duc brought her out to the living room, running a calming hand over her chest when she spotted Devin and Mercury and tensed.

“Whoa. You weren't kidding. She is quite large for a crow,” Mercury said, surprised.

Duc nodded and then took a seat on the couch, letting Tora sit on his leg once he was in place. Leilani watched with wide eyes, her hands curled up in her lap in an effort to keep from reaching out and touching Tora.

“Leilani, this is Tora. Tora, this is Leilani. She's Min's niece, so you have to be nice.” 

Tora nipped lightly at his fingers and then hopped off his knee. Leilani stayed very still as Tora walked the few inches of couch between Duc and her, head held high. Tora stopped in front of Leilani, looked her up and down, and then let out a low caw before jumping up to land on Leilani's leg. Leilani beamed and looked up at Duc.

“Can I pet her?”

“She really likes gentle pets on her chest and head, but she'll tell you if she wants you to touch her head,” he told her. “I'll be right here just in case, okay?”

Leilani nodded and then started petting Tora carefully on the chest. Tora leaned into the petting, eventually lowering her head in a clear demand for scritches there. Leilani smiled brightly and moved her attentions, earning a happy churr from Tora. Duc wasn't sure who was more enthralled with who by the end of the night.

Tora never strayed more than a few feet from Leilani, even during dinner, and Leilani kept checking over her shoulder for Tora to see where she was every so often. Duc found it adorable, and even more so when Tora sat on the back of Leilani's chair and began to try and preen her hair. Devin took a picture of it with their phone, saving the moment.

“I think she's adopted Leilani,” Duc said, resting his chin on his hand with a fond smile as he watched the two interact. “She does that to me all the time, and the only reason she doesn't do it to Minerva is because Min doesn't have hair.”

“She still likes to nip at my ears,” Minerva added with a laugh. “She also likes it when I wear a scarf, because at least that gives her something to adjust.”

“We'll have a hard time getting the two of them apart at the end of of this visit,” Mercury mused. He checked his watch and then got to his feet.

“ 'Lani, time for bed, kidlet.”

“But daddy!”

“She'll be here tomorrow,” Mercury pointed out. “Say good night to everyone and then we'll go get you ready for bed.”

Leilani pouted, gave Tora a few more pats, and then got up to say her good nights. Duc was quietly pleased at the unhesitating hug he received from her, a warm feeling swelling in his chest as the young girl went off to bed. 

Christmas Eve and Day were spent mostly indoors, though they did make time to go out and see the lights on Christmas Eve, as well as go to the small street market that popped up in the park near Main Street on Christmas Day. Leilani had a lot of fun looking at all the things there, and Duc couldn't resist buying her a small wooden figurine of a crow in flight to take home with her. The small family left on the twenty-seventh, though this time both Duc and Minerva saw them off at the airport.

The days between Christmas and New Year's Eve passed swiftly, and soon Duc found himself sitting on the couch with Minerva, the two of them watching the fireworks over Snowshoe via the local televised broadcast. Duc was glad that they were far enough away that he couldn't hear the fireworks directly, though the echoes through the window and the sounds through the TV were more than enough. Once the show was over, Minerva turned off the TV and turned to him.

“Happy New Year, Duc.”

“Happy New Year,” Duc replied, smiling at her. “Hopefully this one will be less intense than the last one.”

Minerva laughed before leaning in and kissing him. Duc returned it with a happy hum, cupping her jaw with one hand. They parted ways after a moment, both wearing content smiles.

“Want to turn in, or do you want to stay up a little longer?”

“Oh! Um, hang on. I have something I want to show you, so staying up a little longer, I guess,” Duc said, getting to his feet. “Wait here?”

Minerva gave him an intrigued look but nodded, settling in to wait for his return. Duc went to the guest room and fetched a small container from the closet there. He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and then went back to the living room, cradling his precious burden in his hands.

“So,” he said as he took a seat next to her once again, “you've done me a great honor in sharing your family with me, even before we started dating. I- I wanted to share mine with yours.”

“Duc? I don't- Your family is- Well...”

Duc held up a hand. “I know, I know. But- I was able to bring a few precious things with me besides Tora when I came through the wormhole”

He opened the container and set the reader for the recording crystals on the coffee table so that both of them could see it. Once he found the correct crystal, he slid it into the appropriate slot, fiddled with the volume and image controls, and then sat back as the reader whirred to life. A projection appeared over the reader, expanding until it was about two feet tall and hovering around eye height for the two seated viewers.

Duc's breath caught when he saw the familiar environs of the main room of his family home and the brightly smiling faces of his parents and sister, though Jaen kept pulling at the fabric of her new robes, nose wrinkling in distaste. Feric called out for Duc to join them in front of the capturing device, her hand resting on Jaen's shoulder to keep her from fiddling more. There was a brief burst of static and then Duc, freshly sixteen and wearing the pale gray robes of a _Kir'desh_ attendee, came into view, his limbs still carrying a bit of the coltish grace of a recent growth spurt as he took his place in front of his parents and next to his sister.

“ _Why do we have to wear new clothes?_ ” Jaen grumbled. “ _ **We're**_ _not the ones doing the ceremony._ ”

Duc knelt down beside his sister, reaching out to take her hands. “ _Because I'm not the only one who should look pretty, little star,_ ” he said, his tone light. “ _Besides, once the ceremony is over, there'll be food and dancing to celebrate, and you'll want to look nice for that._ ”

The five-year-old considered that, nibbling at her bottom lip. “ _You'll dance with me, right? You won't be too grown up for that?_ ”

Duc laughed and then carefully pulled her close in a hug. “ _For you? Never. Now, let's go get this done so we can celebrate and dance together, alright?_ ”

He got to his feet, bringing Jaen with him so she was holding on to him. The recording stopped there, freezing the five of them in time. 

Duc closed his eyes, tears pricking at their corners as a dull wave of grief washed over him. It had hurt when he'd found the crystal in the remnants of his former home, but he hadn't been able to leave it behind, especially not once he'd realized what treasures it held. There were other recordings on the crystal, holding the voices and faces of his family throughout different periods of time, but the one before his _Kir'desh_ ceremony had been the last. He doubted it would ever not hurt when he watched the recordings, but he wasn't about to destroy the crystal, either.

Minerva's hand covered his, squeezing gently. Duc leaned in against her, resting his head on her shoulder as he opened his eyes.

“This was taken about twenty minutes before my _Kir'desh_ ceremony,” he said, his voice low and rough. “Jaen just wanted to dance and have fun at the celebration afterwards. We did our best not to let her know something was wrong, but she was an observant child. No one else had white _glema_ that she could see, after all. I... I left a few days later. I don't know if she ever got to find out what color her _glema_ were. She was about eleven years younger than me, and I missed her sixteenth birthday. I can only assume that they-”

He broke off, shaking his head. “This was the only recording crystal I could find when I went back to look. The people who came to get me only told me that my family was dead, not _when_ they had died. I'm just glad they hadn't lived long enough to see me fulfill my destiny.”

“I think,” Minerva said in a careful tone, “that your destiny is way bigger than what they saw for you, and certainly hasn't entirely come to pass. You've still got a lot of time to pave your way in the world, Duc Nhuten, and I'll be walkin' that path right there beside you.”

Duc breathed out a low sigh, his eyes fixed on the still image of his family from so long ago.

“Yeah,” he said, squeezing Minerva's hand. “Yeah, you will be.”

  


Duc and Minerva entered the Cryptonomica, Minerva checking her watch as they headed towards the inner sanctum in the back of the building. 

“How're we doing on time?” Duc asked.

“Five minutes, so right on schedule,” Minerva replied as Kirby unlocked the door. “You ready?”

“Oh, definitely.”

Right on time, Duc sliced his sword through the air, creating a portal between Sylvain and Earth. It had taken some talking back and forth between Duc and Aubrey through Thacker and Mama, but eventually a solution had been found that would allow Duc to be able to create the portal without having to be near the gate. He quickly put his sword in its scabbard and stepped back to allow the travelers to come through, not wanting to hurt anyone with the blade or get in the way.

It was wonderful to see everyone, especially after a year of being apart. The visitors funneled out of the inner sanctum and out into the warm early summer evening, Aubrey walking hand-in-hand with Dani as they left the building. A cheer rose when the statue of Ned was unveiled, and if Aubrey cast a bit of magic on it to keep the weather and pests from ever wearing it down, well, no one said a word.

Duc sat on a large blanket next to Minerva, leaning in against her as the last episode of _Saturday Night Dead_ began to play. He'd been through a lot in his life and had lost almost everything. He'd thought his fate was sealed when he turned sixteen and visions of ash and fire blazed through his mind, and for years it had seemed that way. And then... 

And then he'd gained hope, and along the way, friends, family, and love. Duc had once thought he'd be paying all his life for the crimes he'd committed, however unwillingly, and instead, the universe had given him the greatest gift:

Amnesty.


End file.
